Choices
by Aebbe
Summary: Thrown back nearly fifty years in time, she has the chance to change the past. To right wrongs and correct mistakes. But in doing so, could she change the future? And is it even possible to change things that have already happened? Choices can be very hard to make. Canon compliant...? Read and find out. (Part of the Dark League story arc, but can be read as a stand alone)
1. You Wouldn't Believe It If I Told You

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of J.K. Rowling's characters or setting, only my plot and my OCs.**

**A/N: PLEASE READ THIS.**

**All my stories are set in the same 'universe' and on the same timeline as each other. That timeline accepts everything that happened in the books as fact (any errors are accidental), as well as - where possible - the extra information JK Rowling has given us; however, it was originally written and published before Pottermore was opened to the public, so I didn't have the information from that to work with. Although I have republished the earlier chapters, I haven't changed the content, only polished the writing in places; I do not intend to rewrite my stories with the Pottermore information (which is so extensive I'm sure I'd still get things wrong anyway) as that would be a great deal of work and I prefer to work on new projects.**

**This is the only one of my stories on this timeline to stray into the weird and wonderful realm of time travel. In all my stories, I try to stay true to Rowling's spirit and portray her characters as accurately as possible, although I add embellishments to her world and timeline for the sake of my plots. I try to keep these believable within the Potterverse, and that includes my theories and explanations of how time travel works. This is not a 'go back and change everything for the better' story; it has many, many plot twists, but in its essence it stays true to JK Rowling's world.**

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Lily Potter grimly tossed down the remains of her drink, set the glass down, picked her bag up, and left the Muggle bar, emerging into the mild August night and the yellow light of the street lamps. The whiteness of her knuckles gripping her handbag showed the nervousness that her face did not; it was long past midnight, and she was alone in a strange and less than salubrious area.

She was angry too. How could he just leave her here, in the middle of an unknown Muggle district? He had claimed to love her; that wasn't the kind of thing you did to someone you loved. Love? It had sounded more like hate as he spat out those horrible words across the table before he left - did love turn to hate so fast? She didn't understand how it had all turned so bad anyway, when it had only been a fleeting bit of fun and she had never thought of it turning into anything more serious.

She stopped and took a few breaths of the summer night air. Her head was spinning from the effects of downing the unfamiliar Muggle spirits too quickly. She was _not_ the things he had called her, she wasn't. She liked having fun, that was all, and if she'd been a young man nobody would have thought twice about it. But she was a girl, so they labelled her, judged her, even the ones who said they loved her... It wasn't her fault he had misunderstood the situation. When had she ever behaved as if it was something serious, as if she wanted to settle down and make her future with him? She knew, uneasily, that she could have let him down more gently, but she was _drunk_ and it had seemed like a joke, the things he was saying. His anger hadn't been a joke though, that hard disgusted tone that spoke ugly words and sounded like a stranger...

Miserably, she stumbled down the street, ignoring the catcalls of a couple of men who had left the same bar as her, and hurrying away from them. Round the corner, there were no catcalling men, because there were no people at all, and the street lights were further apart. Her shoes were uncomfortable, pinching her toes and rubbing her heels, and for the first time she was aware of just how short her skirt was. She straightened up. There was no need to make herself look more stupid and vulnerable than she already did. She was perfectly sober really, and if she concentrated, she could almost stop her head spinning. But she really could not walk in these heels, she realised after another few wobbling steps. Feeling humiliated, she slipped the shoes off and continued up the pavement in her sheer, skin-coloured tights, heedless of the dangers of broken glass or other objects.

She wanted to go home, but home was in Devon and she was hopeless at Apparition at the best of times; it wasn't worth risking in this state. But, she thought in a moment of relieved clarity, she could call the Knight Bus. Yes, that was what she'd do. And she could sneak into the house quietly, and her parents need never see or know, and tomorrow would be a new day and she could pretend that none of this had happened and that Tim Fawcett didn't exist... She fumbled in her bag, looking for a hand mirror. She refused to call the Knight Bus in this state; there might be somebody she knew on it. Her fingers found something small and metallic. Keys? Necklace? No…

It happened so suddenly, so unexpectedly, that it was over before she realised that it had begun. There was a roar, a flash of gold light, a feeling like a strong wind; so strong that it caught her off her feet and flung her heavily against a wall. The roar got louder, and there were voices in it; young men's voices, shouting. Then all was silent, and Lily was sitting, curled in a foetal position, her back against the wall and her head on her knees.

"What the hell?" an angry voice said, "What did you do?"

"That wasn't me!" the second voice was somehow familiar… and yet not familiar.

"Well it sure as hell wasn't me," the first voice said roughly.

And suddenly Lily, through the alcoholic fog, realised what it was that she had touched. Aunt Hermione's specially modified Time Turner. She had been showing it to Lily's parents only the other day, and had accidentally left it on the table in the kitchen.

"I'll take it," Lily had said, "And give it to her when I go to London," and she had put it in her bag there and then, so she didn't forget.

Only she had forgotten of course; she had forgotten even to get in touch with Aunt Hermione. But what exactly had Aunt Hermione said it did? All Lily really remembered her saying was that it wasn't finished and was unstable. Her father had told Lily to be careful with it when she took it. She groaned, and the two young men, who were still arguing about who had caused the golden light and the noise, heard her and turned towards her.

"Holy shit!" one of them exclaimed, "Where did she come from?"

Slowly, Lily uncurled herself, her hand sliding into her bag and finding the comforting shape of her wand.

"Fucking hell," the other young man muttered, "Now we'll have to modify her memory."

So they were wizards. But they clearly did not realise that she was a witch.

The first young man knelt down beside her.

"Hey! Are you okay?" he asked.

The next instant, her wand was against his throat.

"Try to modify my memory, and I'll hex you, I swear I will!" she hissed, her voice only slightly slurred. Shit! Why had she said hex, like a silly school girl? She should have threatened to kill him...

"Whoa!" he held his hands in the surrender position, and glanced over his shoulder at his friend, "She's a witch."

"I can see that," the second young man, the one whose voice was so strangely familiar, sounded amused, "She's also drunk, so I'd watch what you do, Padfoot, or she'll hex you anyway by mistake."

Drunk? She wasn't that drunk. He was laughing at her and she didn't like that...

Padfoot. Why was that name so familiar?

Her brain cleared with the sudden, shocking realisation.

Aunt Hermione's Time Turner. It sent you back in time, like a normal Time Turner. Only where a normal Time Turner would only take you back to your own past, this one would take you however far back you wanted, or at least that was the idea; Aunt Hermione hadn't finished it though, and it wasn't stable... There had been more as well, which she only vaguely remembered; something about a pull of blood, needing the force of a connected bloodline to pull you to a specific time...

And here she was, and Padfoot… Padfoot was the nickname of Sirius Black, her father's godfather, who had died long before she had been born. Which made the thin boy with untidy hair who stood in the shadows and spoke with a voice that was both like and unlike her father's… That made him James Potter, Lily's own grandfather.

"Look, we're not going to modify your memory," the man who must be Sirius said, "We thought you were a Muggle, that was all."

She realised that she was still stabbing him in the neck with her wand and withdrew it slightly, although she did not lower it. She had to be sure.

"What's your name?" she demanded. She was sobering up and her voice was steadier.

He looked at her uncertainly, her wand still trained on him, and she remembered that when her grandfather had been young, they had been in the middle of the First War, unable to know who to trust.

"Sirius Black," he said at last, "And my friend's James Potter. And now would you put the wand down? You're making me nervous."

She did not move it.

"What's _your_ name?" James asked, from behind Sirius.

She laughed harshly.

"You wouldn't believe it if I told you."

Sirius raised his eyebrows.

"Try us."

"Look, Padfoot, maybe we should go somewhere less public," James said, in a low voice, "I mean…" he glanced at Lily, in her thin tights (with a ladder in them now, though she wasn't sure if that had happened when she fell over, or if it had already been there), short skirt and skimpy cardigan over a revealing top, her shoes on the ground beside her.

"Right, yeah. Maybe you'd like to tell her that," Sirius said wryly, "Because at the moment, she's still got her wand trained on me, so I'm not really in a position to make suggestions..."

"Look," James turned back to her, "I know you've got no reason to trust us, really. Except that we haven't tried anything yet, even though I doubt you could take us both on…"

She looked up at him. He looked like her father, only with her brother's brown eyes, and she almost smiled. She had been hearing stories about these two all her life. She knew them almost as well as she knew her living grandparents, the Weasleys.

"I trust you," she said, "I know who you are."

James raised his eyebrows at Sirius, but was met with only a shrug from his friend, and then held out a hand to Lily. She lowered her wand, took his hand - her grandfather's hand, she thought with a shock - and allowed herself to be pulled up.

"Um, listen, Prongs," Sirius spoke to his friend in an undertone, "I don't think the bike'll take three…"

"No problem," James picked up the broomstick that he had let fall to the ground as they argued, "I'll fly. You take the girl," he flung one leg over it, "See you back at yours, right?" And he was gone.

Sirius smiled warmly at Lily, and Lily suddenly remembered that according to the stories (not her father's stories, but there were plenty of others that had emerged once it was finally proved that he hadn't been a traitor), her father's godfather had been a notorious womaniser, and she realised firstly that he had no idea that she was his best friend's granddaughter, secondly that he was perhaps a year older than her at the moment, and thirdly that she was wearing a particularly provocative outfit, which was also singularly unsuitable for straddling a bike.

"Do you mind flying?" he asked her.

She gave him a haughty look.

"I play Quidditch, actually, so no…" she broke off. She had been on the point of telling him that she had played for the Gryffindor team. But he would then want to know why he didn't recognise her, considering how close they must be in age.

"Well, that's good," was all he said, and offered her his hand to help her on. Lily was her mother's daughter, and had to bite her lip to stop herself snappily rejecting his help. But soon she was seated on the famous flying motorbike, and he had climbed on behind her, putting his arms around her. He was very close to her, and his solid warmth was a relief, for she had been starting to feel very cold. The bike roared into life, sped off along the ground for a few moments, then took off, a little like a Muggle aeroplane.

With the wind in her face, she was sobering up quickly - and realising that she was very cold - and the sheer unreality of this situation was hitting her anew. These boys were _dead_. At least, in 2027 they were dead. Now, they were very much alive. What year would it be? They were only around twenty.

And James… James had died at twenty one. Her stomach sank at the thought. It had never really struck her before. He had just been her grandfather, and grandfathers did die, sometimes before their grandchildren were born. But he had been so _young_. And Sirius… the handsome boy with the mischievous smile, who was sitting behind her on the bike and warming her with his body heat… Sirius would spend the next twelve years in Azkaban for betraying his best friend and murdering a street full of Muggles, neither of which crimes he had actually committed.

"So," Sirius called, above the roar of the bike, "Still not going to tell me your name?"

She shook her head. "I can't. Honestly. You'd probably crash the bike if I did."

She felt his grin through his chest.

"Is it that bad?"

She closed her eyes.

"You have no idea."


	2. Forty Seven Years

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of J.K. Rowling's characters or setting.**

**A/N: Thanks to KThxBai for the swift review and Batamut for adding it to your alerts.**

**I am aware of the slight canon error in this chapter – I had forgotten exactly when James and Lily went into hiding, and apparently it was in fact in October 1981, just a few weeks before they were killed (this is what I'm told - I'm not entirely sure which book it comes from?). Changing it would have meant rewriting a lot though, because the plot depends on them going into hiding now (in November 1980) and there's quite a difference between a four month old baby and one over a year old… So I have gone with the mistake. Apologies.**

**Reviews still greeted with great excitement.**

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Sirius' place turned out to be a flat on the fourth floor of a grubby tower block. It was much larger on the inside than the outside though and the decoration was… spectacular, at any rate, Lily thought, as she looked at the gold walls and red upholstery. They were back before James, and as they came in, a young woman came out from one of the other rooms. She stopped when she saw Lily.

"Oh!"

"It isn't what you think," Sirius hastened to assure her, "We… er, found her in distress. James is following on his broom."

"This is Lily Evans," he told Lily, "Sorry, Lily Potter. She and James have only been married a few months and I forget," he grinned at the other Lily, who had gone pink.

At that moment, James walked in though the door behind them, his hair even more untidy and windswept by his flight. Just like her dad when he'd been flying, Lily thought. And this woman… this other Lily Potter… she had her son's eyes. Harry's eyes. The same ones that had been passed to Lily's brother Al. And red hair, just like herself, except this Lily's hair was dark red and had a curl to it, while her own was the bright Weasley colour, straight and sleek.

However, she did not have much time for these facts to sink in. "Tea, anybody?" Sirius asked cheerfully. They all assented - Lily felt that something hot, non-alcoholic and caffeinated would go down very well right now - and he set about making it. Lily – Lily Evans, as the younger Lily Potter had to think of her, for the sake of her own sanity – was looked confused.

"Sirius, what kind of introduction was that?! What's your name?" she asked Lily, kindly, taking in her clothing, untidy hair and general dishevelled appearance, "Are you all right? Can I lend you… um… something to wear?"

Lily, very conscious of her exposed flesh, smiled gratefully.

"If that's okay…"

"Of course," Lily Evans disappeared, and re-emerged with a long dressing gown, "This is probably the easiest, if it's okay with you?"

"Oh, that's great, thanks." Lily slipped it on, immediately feeling more in control of the situation.

"And sorry, what did you say your name was?" Lily Evans asked for the second time.

"It's a mystery," said Sirius, cheerfully, bringing round mugs of hot tea, "Apparently, its so shocking we wouldn't believe her and so horrifying it might make me crash my bike."

Lily Evans looked, if anything, even more confused.

"But… what…? I mean, where…? How…?"

"When and why?" Sirius finished, solemnly, "Good questions, all of them, Lil, if not very original."

Lily Evans glared at him.

"Why don't we all sit down," James suggested, and as there did not seem to be much else to do, they all sat down.

Lily took a sip of her tea, which was far too strong and scalding hot, and took a deep breath. Then she pulled the Time Turner out of her bag, and held it up.

"Do you know what this is?"

"A Time Turner!" James exclaimed, a wondering expression appearing on his face, "Do you mean…? Have you _used_ it? Is that how you...?"

Lily nodded.

"Yes, but this isn't a normal Time Turner. My Aunt Hermione's… interested in that kind of thing. Time travel theory and all that. And she's a brilliant witch. She… sort of… modified it. Legally, of course. She had permission to experiment with it…" and as she was Head of the Department for Magical Law Enforcement, the permission hadn't been that hard to get, Lily added to herself, but did not say out loud, "She changed it… so that it can take you any length of time you want to go," and she explained, without mentioning any names, exactly what it did, and how it had come to be sitting, unfinished, in her bag."

They listened in silence.

"So…" said Lily Evans, when she had finished, "You mean… that you've come from a different time?"

She nodded. They looked at each other.

"From the past, I assume," James said, eventually, "As you thought we might recognise your name."

"Or from the future," said Sirius, dryly, "As you seemed to recognise ours."

She looked at him, and nodded.

"From the future."

At that moment, there was a crowing sound from the next room, and Lily Evans jumped up.

"Sorry. I'll be back in a minute." She disappeared.

The two young men looked at Lily in silence.

"How far in the future?" asked Sirius, at last. Lily thought.

"What's the date?"

"21st of November, 1980," said James at once. November. No wonder it had felt colder. It had been August in 2027. She took a deep breath.

"Forty seven years. Give or take a few months."

"And…" Sirius was frowning, "if I've got this right… you must be related to one of us in some way, right? Either me or James. There has to have been some blood connection to draw you to this time..."

Lily Evans came back into the room. In her arms was a very awake baby with a shock of dark hair, a pair of green eyes, and an unblemished forehead. Lily looked up, and stared.

James grinned proudly.

"Hello, monster. Awake, are you?" he looked at Lily, "This is our son…"

"Harry," said Lily quietly. James looked surprised, but Sirius gazed at her with narrowed eyes.

"You know a lot about us, considering that we know nothing about you at all," he said with amusement, "And if you come from… er… forty seven years into the future, I'm amazed that we're so well known. Do we get famous or something? What else have you got up your sleeve?"

Lily looked at him, thoughtfully. Oh well, in for a sickle, in for a galleon.

"I know that your nickname is Padfoot," she said quietly, "And that yours," she turned to James, "is Prongs. Because you're both unregistered Animagi; you're a stag, and you're a large black dog. And your friend, Peter Pettigrew, is a rat, which is why you call him Wormtail. And I know that you did it because your other friend, Remus Lupin, is a werewolf, and that you used to go down to the Shrieking Shack with him every full moon. I know that _you_," she looked at Sirius, "left home when you were sixteen, because you couldn't stand living with a family of prejudiced Purebloods," they were already staring at her open-mouthed, so she thought she might as well push it a bit further. There were many things she could have told them about themselves, but she had to get them to trust her. What details could she give them? She looked at Sirius.

"And I know that there's a portrait of your mother in the entrance hall of your house, and the kitchen's down some stairs at the end of the passage… And there'll be house elf heads on the walls going up the stairs," those had gone by 2027, of course, but Aunt Hermione had told her about them, "and at the top, there's a bathroom on the right and a drawing room on the left, and your bedroom and your brother's are right at the top of the house," she smothered a sudden smile, "Your bedroom's decorated with the Gryffindor colours, just like this flat, and pictures from Muggle porn magazines…" she tailed off. Sirius looked as though he'd been hit with a stunning spell.

"D'you mean," James sounded as though he were trying not to laugh, "that they actually went to the trouble of recording what Sirius' bedroom looks like? Or is it still like that after forty seven years?"

"Well," she looked at them, "That Permanent Sticking Charm you used was pretty powerful, Sirius."

Lily Evans gurgled with laughter.

"You stuck porn to your walls with a Permanent Sticking Charm, Sirius?"

"I don't get it," said Sirius, sending a scowl at Lily Evans, "How do you know this?"

"Number 12, Grimmauld Place was my family home until I was eight," Lily said, simply.

"So you're a Black?" Sirius said, slowly, looking almost disappointed, "Some descendent of Regulus? You don't look anything like him..."

"No…" Lily took a deep breath. Now was the moment.

"My name's Lily Luna Potter," she looked at the baby, who was chuckling at his mother, "and that's my dad."

There was a long silence, broken by Sirius' howl of laughter. They all looked at him.

"Sorry," he said, grinning, "But you have to admit, this is pretty funny. You're their _granddaughter_. Lily, James, you're her _grandparents_. And she's our age!" He jumped up and paced back and forwards, grinning, "So what happens to us? Are we still alive in your time? Do you know us? Do you go and have Sunday Lunch at Gran and Gramps Potter's?" he stopped and grinned at her, "Do we all end up rich and famous? Does Dorcas Meadowes give in and marry Peter? Am I still good-looking when I'm old?"

She looked at him steadily.

"No."

"I'm not?" he clasped his hand to his chest, "I'm wounded, er… _Lily_!"

"Sirius," Lily Evans spoke quietly, "I think… I think she meant 'no' to all of it."

Sirius looked at her, his amusement fading. "Really? You mean… we're all dead before we're seventy? What happens to us?"

She looked down at her hands.

"I… I don't think I can tell you any more," she whispered.

"Now, hold on a minute," Sirius sat down in front of her, "You can't tell us that much and then just stop! Peter doesn't marry Dorcas? Poor old Wormtail. Does he marry anybody?" he stopped suddenly, as though struck with a sudden thought, "Do _I_ marry anybody?"

"Sirius, I'm not sure I even want to know all this," Lily Evans broke in, "I'm not sure it's right…"

Sirius waved her objection aside.

"I'm not asking you to tell me _who_. Just _if_."

Lily looked him in the eye.

"If I tell you some things, I have to tell you everything, because it's all linked up together. And I can't just do that. I have… I have to think about it. Please?"

"But…" Sirius began.

"Leave it, Padfoot," James interrupted, and Sirius fell silent.

"But can I ask you something?" she went on.

Sirius raised his eyebrows.

"So you get to ask questions, but you don't have to answer them? Not very fair."

"Go ahead," said Lily Evans, ignoring Sirius.

"Has… has Professor Dumbledore been in touch at all? About… anything about…" she remembered just in time that people in 1980 would be wary of saying Voldemort's name, "You-Know-Who? Or…" she looked at James, "your Invisibility Cloak?"

James frowned, and Lily was aware of a sudden degree of tension in the room, as if she'd touched on a slightly sensitive subject.

"Yes. Dumbledore thinks we're in danger," James sounded disgruntled, "He wants Lily and Harry and I to go into hiding. It's ridiculous - I mean, of course we're in danger; this is a war we're fighting. I don't see why we'd be in any more danger than anyone else, and I don't see how he expects me to do anything if I have to hide..." he looked at Lily with a sudden sharpness in his expression, "He hasn't said anything about the cloak. Why are you asking that? Is he right? Is something going to happen?"

She hesitated, then nodded. "He's right that you're in danger. But I can't tell you any more - it isn't safe..." She couldn't go changing history, could she? Of course they wanted to know, but she'd have to think about what she could tell them. Or else she had to work out how to get home again before they could get anything else out of her...

Luckily, it was late and eventually they gave up the questions in favour of going to bed. Lily was given a spare room to sleep in. To her relief, it was fairly normally decorated, although the bed was a four-poster. She undressed and fell into it, for she was exhausted, but she could not sleep. Thoughts kept running round and round inside her head, thoughts that threatened to turn to panic.

She had travelled back in time. It was not a dream, or a trick. It was really happening. Whether she would ever be able to get back again… she pushed that thought away. She _must_ get back. In the meantime, she had to decide what to do. She had probably already said more than was sensible. Perhaps she should not have told them who she was. Sirius in particular did not seem willing to give up on getting answers. And what could she say? Lily stared up at the dark ceiling. These people… she could not think of them as people long dead, and part of the past. They were not the past, they were the present. Alive and happy and… nice. And so young. Her heart constricted when she thought of what was going to happen in the next year.

She had visited the grave in Godric's Hollow; seen the sad inscription that recorded the deaths of Lily and James Potter. She had seen, too, her father's photograph of Sirius Black in later life, with the haunted eyes that looked so much older than he really was; the legacy of twelve years' torment in Azkaban. Could she just stand by and let it happen? Because, of course, it would have been so easy to avoid, if only they had known. All she need do was convince them that Peter Pettigrew was a traitor. Keep Sirius as Secret Keeper, or use Remus Lupin. And the murders in Godric's Hollow would never happen, and her father would grow up with his parents, without a lightening-shaped scar on his forehead, and Lily might have two sets of grandparents…

And then Voldemort would never fall that first time, defeated by his attempt to kill baby Harry. He would never weaken himself by making that accidental Horcrux. He would go on, as he was now, getting more and more powerful. And if, by some chance, he did fall, and things happened as they had in Lily's reality, how would her father finally defeat him? He would not have the protection his mother gave him when she died for him. He would not have that crucial connection with Voldemort. He would not be able to speak Parseltongue, which would mean that, if the Chamber of Secrets were indeed opened as it had been in Lily's timeline, Lily's mother would probably die at the age of eleven. And her father would never share Voldemort's thoughts; would never know when the Dark Lord was approaching; would not see when Grandad Weasley was attacked in the Department of Mysteries.

But then, perhaps Grandad would never _be_ in the Department of Mysteries. Because probably Voldemort would never fall in the first place, preventing all the subsequent events she knew as facts.

Lily closed her eyes, her head spinning with it all. The thought she kept coming back to was that she could not just let them die. There had to be another way. She went through what she knew in her mind. Would it help if they knew about the Horcruxes earlier? How many had Voldemort already made by this point? she couldn't remember, but what if she went to Albus Dumbledore and told him who she was and what she knew? Surely that would give them a great advantage? And then there was Severus Snape… he was still on the Dark Side at the moment, wasn't he? Perhaps he could be persuaded to change allegiance without Lily Evans actually having to die…?

The thoughts were never ending, but Lily was exhausted, and eventually she drifted off into an uneasy sleep.


	3. Less than a Year from Now

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of J.K. Rowling's characters or setting**

**A/N: ****Thanks so much to arwenjanelilylyra for the reviews, hope you like this chapter as much.**

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It took her a few moments, when she woke, to remember what had happened. It was late morning, and she could hear someone moving around in the sitting room, and the cry of a hungry baby. She stumbled out of bed, wrapped Lily Evans' dressing gown around herself again, and peered into the mirror.

She had last night's make-up smeared all over her face, a sudden reminder of what had happened before her time-switch. Tim Fawcett's sudden declaration of his love for her, and his anger when she turned him down. Her own drunkenness. She shivered again as she thought of it. What a horrible evening. Finding herself forty-seven years in the past wasn't even the worst part of it.

Though she wondered suddenly what her family were thinking. Would they know that she had disappeared yet? Probably not. They would all assume she was with one of the others. And Tim probably wouldn't be checking that she got home all right, after what had passed between them. She ought to try and get back before they noticed. Her parents would be beside themselves. No, that wasn't how Time Turners worked, was it? They allowed you to be in two places at once. She would return to the exact moment she had disappeared... right? Well, that wouldn't be much fun, although at least this time she'd be sober. And what would happen if she did not return? She had no answer to that.

She muttered a spell for the removal of make-up, which she had perfected over the years, and raked a hand through her hair. Another spell smoothed the wild tangles, and she soon emerged to a cosy domestic scene. Lily Evans was feeding Harry, while James fried bacon at the stove. Sirius was nowhere to be seen.

"Good morning!" Lily Evans greeted her cheerfully.

She smiled slightly.

"Good morning."

"Bacon?" James asked.

"Oh, yes please. That smells lovely."

"It's about all he can cook," Lily Evans said, with a smile.

"I'm better than Sirius," James retorted.

"That's not saying very much."

"This… is Sirius' flat, right?" Lily asked, more to make conversation than anything, because she knew that it was.

"That's right," James served the bacon onto plates, "but we've known him too long to act like guests."

The door opened and Sirius himself came in, looking windswept and extremely handsome.

"Oh good, just in time," he seated himself at the table and leaned back with a grin, "You can come and stay all the time if you cook my breakfast for me every day. And the place had never seen this level of tidiness before Lily arrived."

Lily Evans looked sternly at him.

"It was appalling when we got here, Sirius."

"All right, G_randma_," he grinned wickedly at her as he dug into his bacon.

"So…" he went on, as they all began to eat, "Have you made up your mind to tell us a bit more yet?"

Lily looked unhappy. "I… I don't know. I don't know what to do."

Lily Evans, who was trying to eat bacon with one hand and feed a baby with the other, looked at her.

"We were talking last night, Lily," she said, quietly, "After you'd gone to sleep. And we wondered... There are obviously… some bad things that are going to happen, right?"

Lily nodded slowly, and James took up the story.

"And are they things that… we'd be able to do something about, if we knew? Maybe stop them happening?"

She nodded again, chewing her bottom lip.

"Maybe."

"But the problem is," Sirius put in, "that you don't know what the long-term consequences of that would be, right? If we stop those bad things happening, what other, _worse_ things might happen because of it."

Lily nodded earnestly.

"That's it, exactly."

"So," said Sirius, bluntly, "Are we going to die? Is that what you can't tell us?"

She looked at them for a moment. They were all looking very seriously at her. With difficulty, she nodded.

"Soon?" asked James, his voice carefully calm.

She looked beseechingly at them.

"I can't…"

"So, soon then," Sirius confirmed.

"What about Harry?" Lily Evans asked, pleadingly, "Just tell me that he'll be all right, and I won't care about anything else. Will he be happy? How will he grow up?"

Lily looked at her.

"Well," she said, with a faint smile, "he's all right, obviously, as he's my dad. My mother's Ginny Weasley. She… won't be born yet."

"Is that a daughter of Arthur and Molly Weasley?" Lily Evans looked delighted, "That's wonderful! And they've got a little boy just a bit older than Harry. Will they be friends?"

Lily nodded.

"Best friends, actually. And Uncle Ron will help…" she broke off, and although they exchanged glances, they did not press her.

"And… do you have any brothers and sisters?" asked James. They seemed to have taken a tangent from where they had started, but she supposed it was no wonder that they wanted to know about Harry's life and his children, especially as they were facing the prospect of never seeing him grow up themselves.

"Yes," she replied, "I've got two older brothers. James and Albus."

"What, no Sirius?" Sirius looked put out.

Lily smiled at him.

"Actually, my oldest brother's James Sirius."

"And are either of them... married or anything? Do _they_ have kids?" Lily Evans asked, as it seemed to strike her that as Lily was barely younger than they were, her older brothers could quite easily have started families.

"No," she shook her head, "James has a girlfriend though." At least, she thought he did. James and his girlfriend seemed a bit on and off at the moment.

"And what about you?" Sirius grinned at her, "As your father's godfather, I'm allowed to ask these questions entirely innocently."

She blushed, and a flash of pain crossed her face as she remembered last night.

"No, there's nobody. Not any more."

"As of when?" Sirius sounded so sympathetic, she couldn't resent his blatant nosiness.

"Last night," she said shortly.

"Oh," said James, "The reason why you were stumbling along a Muggle street at gone midnight, dressed for a night out, drunk and alone?"

Lily's mouth quirked into half a smile.

"Something like that. He told me he was in love with me and asked me to move in with him."

"And you said no?" Lily Evans asked.

"Yes... I mean, as far as I was concerned, we weren't even in a serious relationship. I thought he was joking. I… I laughed at him."

"Ouch," said Sirius, "I'm guessing he wasn't too happy?"

"No," Lily admitted, "He said I was a little whore who only wanted to play with men."

Sirius whistled, and James looked furious.

"He said that to a Potter?"

Sirius laughed. "Oh Prongs, don't say you're starting to feel paternal. Or should that be grandpaternal?"

James scowled, but Lily spoke before he could.

"The trouble is, he's right," she said, simply, "I've never been interested in a serious relationship," _except with one certain person_, a small voice inside her said, but she ignored it, "I just didn't know… that he felt… differently. Or that he thought I did."

Why was she telling them this? Well, partly because she felt that she needed to tell somebody or burst, and they were the only people here. But it wasn't just that. They felt like her family, which they were in a way. And yet, they weren't quite like family, because she could never have told her parents, or James and Albus about this. They were more a cross between family and friends. And something told her that they would understand; that they would not call her the unpleasant names that some people at school had called her. They would be sympathetic, but they would not take it too seriously, which was just perfect.

There was a silence for a few moments. She hoped that they would not push her for more details. They did not.

"Right," said Sirius, after a moment's silence, "So Harry's going to be all right. That still leaves us, and I actually don't think I want to die young. If you told us, would it really be so bad?"

Lily Evans looked down at her baby son, who had stopped feeding, and gazed up at her with a milky smile.

"I just can't bear the thought of leaving him alone," she said softly, and looked up at Lily, "Lily… if there was anything… anything we could do… Wouldn't it be better to _know_?"

She couldn't do it, Lily realised, as she watched their faces, saw the proud young parents with their baby, and three people hardly older than herself, with their whole lives ahead of them. No matter that for her it was all old history, she couldn't stand by and let them go to their deaths. She would feel like a murderer.

"Have you got the place sorted?" she asked, abruptly, "Where you're going into hiding?"

James nodded.

"In Godric's Hollow," she winced at the name, and the movement did not go unnoticed. James and Sirius exchanged glances.

"And… have you got a Secret Keeper?" Lily continued.

"Well…" James looked at Sirius, who looked uncomfortable, "We were going to have Padfoot. But now he doesn't want to."

"I just don't feel comfortable with that responsibility," Sirius said, sounding as though they'd had this conversation several times already.

"And you think _Peter_ is a better person to give a responsibility to?" James asked.

"Better than me," Sirius muttered, "No, seriously, Prongs. It's just that it's too obvious. I'm the most obvious person for it to be. If he's really after you, he'll come after me. And it's not that I'm afraid – well, obviously, I'd rather _not_ be tortured – but I'd never forgive myself if… if I wasn't strong enough. If something happened to you because of me."

"And you honestly think Wormtail would be less likely to crack under torture than you?" James asked sceptically.

"No, I just think he's less likely to be tortured. They'd never think of Peter. Nobody ever thinks of Peter. He's below everybody's radar."

"All right, all right," James rolled his eyes, "We've already had this argument, and I've already agreed. I don't believe he's going to come after us anyway. I think Dumbledore's being paranoid…"

"He's not," Lily said suddenly, finding that she had made up her mind, "He's right. And you mustn't make Wormtail the Secret Keeper."

Sirius sat up, suddenly alert.

"No? Why not?"

"No," she said, firmly, "Do it yourself, give it to Lupin, give it to _Dumbledore_! Anybody, except Peter Pettigrew!" she looked at them with tears in her eyes, "I shouldn't tell you. I don't know what'll happen, but I can't let you do it. He's a traitor. Pettigrew. He's with Voldemort," they all flinched, "He'll give you away," she looked at them, "You've already been betrayed once. Make Wormtail your Secret Keeper, and he'll go straight to Voldemort…"

"Don't say his name," said Sirius, through gritted teeth.

"My father's always used his name," said Lily, thoughtlessly, "And he had more reason to fear Voldemort than anyone else in the world…"

"What?" Lily Evans clutched her son to her, "_Why_?"

"Oh, I _can't_!" Lily cried, in anguish, "I can't tell you everything! But if you make Pettrigrew your Secret Keeper, he'll betray you to Voldemort, and you'll both die in Godric's Hollow, less than a year from now!"

There. She had said it. There was no going back now. The other three adults in the room had gone very quiet.

"But if we choose somebody else…" said Lily Evans, quietly.

"I don't know. Maybe if you make Sirius the Secret Keeper, Voldemort will go after him, and torture it out of him, and kill you anyway. But at least there'll be a chance."

What had she done? Had she just condemned the world to a reign of terror under Lord Voldemort?

"I'm missing something here," said Sirius, frowning, "If You-Know-Who comes looking for Lily and James, and… and… murders them, why doesn't Harry die? You-Know-Who isn't known for his kindness and mercy towards children..."

Lily took a deep breath.

"He… he tried to kill him. But it didn't work. The spell bounced back on Voldemort, and that was when his power was broken… He disappeared."

There was a deathly pause.

"So, what you're saying," said James, "Is that by our deaths, You-Know-Who is defeated? And if we save ourselves… we could be stopping that from happening?"

"I… I see why you didn't want to tell us," Lily Evans said, in a small voice.

"You have to tell us the rest now," James said softly, "We have to know the full story. We have to understand all the consequences of whatever we decide to do."

Lily nodded. That was only fair. She was pretty sure that if either of her parents knew what she'd done, they would be horrified. But would they have been able to restrain themselves from doing the same thing, in her position?

"What happens to me?" Sirius asked. She looked at, her eyes doubtful

"You really want to know?"

He hesitated, then nodded.

"Yes. However bad it is."

She sighed.

"You're right, you know. You are the obvious Secret Keeper. Too obvious." she looked at Lily Evans and James, "So if you do pick Wormtail, at least make sure somebody other than the four of you knows that you didn't pick Sirius after all. Somebody like Dumbledore. More than one person, preferably. Because that way, Sirius might not get the blame for betraying you…"

James gave an exclamation.

"They think _Sirius_ betrays us? That's insane!"

"Plenty of insane things happen," she reminded him, "How about Severus Snape turning out to be one of the heroes of the Second War?"

"Sev?" Lily Evans exclaimed, and at the same time, both James and Sirius said "Snape?"

"No, wait," Sirius went on, "You can tell us about Snivellus in a minute. And about the _second war_. We were talking about me. People think I'm with You-Know-Who? But why can't I just tell them it was Peter?"

"After Lily and James… died," Lily said, "you… you knew it had to have been Peter, of course. You were the only person who knew the Secret Keeper had been changed. So you tracked him down. I don't know what you were planning on doing - kill him, probably. But whatever it was, it didn't go according to plan…"

"Please don't tell me Peter Pettigrew is going to kill me?" Sirius groaned.

"No. He's going to be much cleverer than that."

"Clever? Peter?" said James, incredulously.

"Maybe you need to stop underestimating Peter Pettigrew," said Lily impatiently, "I've told you, he's a traitor. And he may not be clever in the way you are, but he's cunning. Anyway, he set you up. He let you catch up with him, and then made it look like you killed a whole load of Muggles, and disappeared... When the Ministry arrived, there was you, a bunch of dead bodies, and a few of Peter's fingers. It looked pretty bad..."

Sirius was staring at her, horrified.

"Dead bodies? But I wouldn't kill Muggles..."

"Of course you wouldn't. You didn't. Peter did. And cut off his own fingers, and…"

"And transformed," finished James, as he realised the obvious ending of the story, "And disappeared, presumably. Bloody hell, Padfoot."

"And what happens?" Sirius looked as though he didn't really want to hear the answer any more.

"You were arrested and sent to Azkaban for twelve years," she said simply.

He turned white and looked as though he might be sick.

"_Twelve years?_" he made an attempt to smile, "Can't I just die, like James and Lily?"

"Well, you were actually sent there for life," Lily amended, "But you escaped after twelve years, when you realised that Wormtail was at Hogwarts, sleeping in the same dormitory as my dad…"

"_What_?" James demanded.

"In his rat form, obviously. He stayed in that form for all those years, because of course, everyone had to think he was dead. And he managed to get adopted by the Weasley family, and Uncle Ron took him to Hogwarts. And then," she frowned, "I'm not sure how you found out actually, but you did, and then you escaped…"

"How does he manage that?" James interrupted, "Nobody's ever escaped from Azkaban..."

"I'm… not exactly sure," Lily wished she knew her history better, but then perhaps it was a good thing that she couldn't give them all the details, "But he did, when Dad was about thirteen."

"Well, I always was pretty clever," Sirius smiled faintly, still looking a bit sick, "Do I save Harry from Wormtail?"

"No," Lily shook her head, "Dad saves you. From the Dementors. They caught up with you in the Hogwarts grounds, and Dad cast a Patronus…"

"Hold on," James was frowning, "You said Harry was only thirteen... And he could cast a Patronus? Strong enough to actually repel Dementors?" There was a note of pride in James' voice.

"Strong enough to repel quite a lot of Dementors, actually," Lily said, "They had the whole force of Azkaban out. In fact, it was Remus Lupin who taught him to cast one."

"So, I'm going to have Harry and Remus to thank for my soul," Sirius smiled slightly.

"And Aunt Hermione," Lily added, "She was there too. They had to use her Time-Turner – this one, actually – to be there in time."

"What… what shape does Harry's Patronus take?" Lily Evans spoke for the first time in a while, not taking her eyes off her son.

Lily smiled, sadly.

"Actually, it's a stag."

Lily Evans raised her eyes and looked at James, whose face had gone curiously still.

"Makes sense, I suppose," said Sirius, "Prongs the Second," he held out his arms for his godson, and Lily handed him over, a little reluctantly, "So… if I survive Azkaban, how do I die in the end?"

Lily watched as Sirius swung the baby Harry up over his head, and the little boy gurgled with laughter. How different a childhood her father might have had if even one of these people had been able to look after him.

"Bellatrix Lestrange murdered you, two years after you escaped," she said, absently, "In the Department of Mysteries."

"What?" Sirius looked at her, and Harry made complaining noises, cross to have lost his playmate's attention, "What was I doing there?"

"Very long story," Lily told him. Sirius held Harry at arm's length and looked thoughtfully at him.

"James, mate," he said at last, "Do me a favour, yeah? Don't make Wormy your Secret Keeper."

"Okay, so we know about all the bad things that are going to happen to us if we do use Wormtail," said James, "But what'll happen if we don't? How will that change things?"

"It's… well, that's quite a long story too," said Lily, "But basically, there's been a prophecy made - Dumbledore knows about it; it's why he wants you to go into hiding. And it says that Dad – Harry – is going to be the one to defeat Voldemort. Voldemort already knows about the prophecy, and that's why he's going to come after you. And the reason Dad didn't – doesn't – die, is because you," she looked at Lily Evans, "sacrifice yourself for him. Voldemort kills James, but he offers you the chance to leave, and you don't. And, well, I never really understood it all, but this is what Dumbledore told Dad," she stumbled on, wishing again that she had paid more attention to her dad's old stories, "by sacrificing yourself, you gave Dad some sort of protection against Voldemort…"

"And that was how Voldemort was defeated?" James asked.

"That was how he was defeated the first time," Lily said, "But he didn't die. He… have you heard of Horcruxes?" their faces were blank, "No, well, it didn't used to be taught at Hogwarts. But, you see, there's a way of using really dark magic to split your soul…"

"Split your _soul_?" whispered Lily Evans.

"Yes. You can put the fragments into… well, into anything. Objects, animals, people. It mutilates your soul; you're not a complete human any more. But you can't die, unless all the Horcruxes you've made are destroyed, and it's pretty hard to destroy a Horcrux. It's really dark magic, obviously. You have to murder somebody for every Horcrux you make."

"So… You-Know-Who's made these… _Horcruxes_?" Sirius asked, "Bloody hell!"

Lily nodded.

"He's only made a few at this point. I'm not sure how many, but there are still some to come. But obviously, even though his own killing curse rebounds on him, he can't die. What it does, though, is weaken him. Weaken him so much he's nothing. And it also… it makes another Horcrux. An accidental one, that he never knows he's made," she paused. Were they ready to hear this? Well, she couldn't exactly make them understand without telling them.

"It made my Dad – Harry – into another Horcrux," she whispered, "It put a piece of Voldemort's soul inside him."

The colour drained from Lily Evans' face, and James half stood up, then sat down again, running his hand through his hair. Sirius looked at the baby in his arms as though he had never seen him before.

"Holy shit!" he whispered.

"It didn't… it didn't make Dad _into_ Voldemort," Lily hastened to assure them, "Nobody even knew it had happened for years. It just gave him certain things… he was a Parseltongue. And… he has a scar, on his forehead, from when Voldemort tried to kill him. It used to hurt when Voldemort was angry. And then, as Voldemort got more powerful again, Dad began to be able to… to see into Voldemort's head. See what he was doing. Without that… they would never have been able to defeat Voldemort in the end."

James slumped back in his chair and stared at his son.

"Shit. Who'd have thought the little monster would turn out to be that important?"

"But what'll happen?" Lily Evans asked, "If none of it happens? If we don't die; if Harry isn't a… a Horcrux?"

"I don't know," said Lily wretchedly, "But Voldemort won't be defeated the first time. He'll go on getting more powerful."

James got up and began to pace up and down.

"Does Dumbledore know about these Horcruxes?"

"Um… later he does. He works it out and tells my dad. Now? No, I don't think so."

James sat down again, as suddenly as he had got up.

"Well, maybe if we told him… Maybe if people knew about this _now_, instead of in, what? Fifteen, sixteen years? Maybe we'd be able to stop him somehow. Some way that doesn't involve Harry."

Lily nodded.

"I thought of that last night. It's the only thing I could think of."

"Right. Good idea," Sirius looked relieved, "We'll ask Dumbledore. We'll go to Hogwarts right now…"

James shook his head.

"No, Padfoot. Lily and I have to go to Godric's Hollow today. It's all arranged; the portkey's set up and everything. Bathilda's expecting us today, and then we move into the new place tomorrow… if we've got a Secret Keeper by then, obviously."

"James…" Sirius said slowly, "You need a Secret Keeper. I'm too obvious. Moony's too obvious. Peter… We _can't_ choose Peter. Not now…" he trailed off and looked doubtfully at them all, "There's no way I'm letting the two of you sacrifice yourselves. No way. We have to rely on Dumbledore to find a way round this, with the information we've got…"

"Sirius," Lily interrupted, incredulously, "This is _Voldemort_ we're talking about! Not some little inconvenience Dumbledore can sort out with a snap of his fingers. If Dumbledore had a way of defeating Voldemort, I think he'd have used it by now. I'm not sure knowing about the horcruxes is going to help _that_ much!"

"Dumbledore can do anything," Sirius said, with confidence, and Lily stared at them silently, realising that she knew things about Albus Dumbledore that they did not as well.

"He's a human being," she said quietly, "And he has limits, just like any human. I'm not saying we shouldn't go to him. I think we should. In fact I think it's our only hope. But I just don't think that Dumbledore's necessarily going to have all the answers." _Or that his answers would be the ones you want to hear,_ she added silently to herself.

James suddenly looked quizzically at her.

"Why are you doing this?" he asked suddenly, "I mean, to you, we're people who've been dead a long time. People you never knew. Why aren't you just trying to get home as quickly as possible?"

Lily stared at him, startled. Why wasn't she? She didn't really know.

"I may not have ever known you," she said quietly in the end, "but I know him," she pointed at Harry, "And I know what he went through. Him and my mum, and my uncles and aunts, and their friends, and Grandma and Grandad Weasley. I know all of them. I know my Uncle George, who's never been the same since his twin brother died at the Battle of Hogwarts. I know Teddy Lupin, who grew up without any parents. I know Uncle Neville, who lived with his grandmother when he was little because his parents were tortured into insanity. I know all those people, and I care about them, and I've seen what it did to them. I suppose I hoped… I hoped I might be able to spare them some of that. Although all I've done so far is make sure Voldemort doesn't get his power broken, so goodness knows what's going to happen. I've probably made it all a hundred times worse…"

There was a silence for a few moments, then Sirius said, "Teddy _Lupin_?"

Lily nodded, and Sirius grinned faintly.

"I knew Moony'd get married some day. How long does he get as a married man?"

Lily stared at him. He was trying for a light tone, but she couldn't help him out.

"Less than two years," she said bluntly, "Both he and his wife died at the Battle of Hogwarts. Teddy never really knew them."

"Like us," said Lily Evans quietly. Lily smiled slightly.

"Except that Teddy's godfather didn't get himself shut up in Azkaban."

"Who is his godfather?" James asked. This time Lily's smile was wider.

"Dad."

James looked startled.

"But… how much younger than Harry is he?"

"Oh… about seventeen years," Lily said, "Remus didn't get married until quite late on."

"Who does he marry?" asked Sirius, curiously.

Lily looked doubtfully at him.

"D'you promise not to tell him?"

Sirius held up a hand.

"I swear by… by the honour of the Marauders!"

"Um, well you know your cousin Andromeda?"

"But she's married to Ted Tonks!" Sirius looked outraged, "They've got a _daughter_! Remus can't marry Andromeda! Anyway, she's years older than him."

"Yes," Lily agreed, "I never said that Remus married Andromeda. He marries her daughter."

"_Dora_?" Sirius gaped at her, "But… but… she's seven years old!"

"Well, I said he didn't get married for a while," Lily said irritably, "And we're getting really off-topic here."

"_Dora_?" Sirius repeated incredulously, but then he apparently pulled his mind away from his friend's future marriage, "Well, anyway, what I was going to say was, what about her as Secret Keeper?" he nodded at Lily. I mean, nobody here even knows she exists; she's presumably going back to her real time as soon as she can; and so long as we don't let on who she is, nobody would dream of you using a complete stranger."

James looked thoughtful.

"It could work…"

"I'm not sure," said Lily Evans, doubtfully, "I mean, Sirius, if you know who the Secret Keeper is, that's no better than you being the Secret Keeper. If You-Know-Who catches you, you're as likely to tell him who the Secret Keeper is as let it slip if it's you."

"The same goes if you use Wormtail," Sirius pointed out, "The thing about Lily is that by the time You-Know-Who's caught me, tortured the truth out of me and goes to search for her, she hopefully won't even be here any more."

Lily shivered at the casual way they talked of torture and death; it was a fact of life in these times, an everyday danger for members of the Order of the Phoenix. But she had to nip this alarming idea in the bud.

"No," she said, decidedly. They looked at her, and Sirius opened his mouth to speak. She cut him off.

"I can't do that. Don't you see? I shouldn't have told you. I shouldn't have changed things. I don't even know if it's _possible_ to change things; maybe I've just… just blown apart reality or something. Or maybe it is possible, and I've just changed all the major events of recent history. That isn't a good thing to have done, no matter how it may seem to the people in it. I've done something that should never have happened! And if you make me the Secret Keeper… what I _ought_ to do is put it right. Make sure things happen how they're supposed to happen! If you made me Secret Keeper, I could do that, very easily. Only I couldn't. I couldn't do that to you. And that choice would tear me apart..."


	4. A Motorbike Ride

**Disclaimer: I do not own JKR's characters or world**

_James Sirius Potter opened his eyes blearily. He had been sleeping, as he tended to do, face down, arms and legs sprawled out as though he had been dropped, front first, onto the bed. There was somebody knocking on the door. Merlin, what time was this to come calling?_

"_This had better be bloody important," he muttered, as he disentangled himself from his bed sheets and stumbled to his feet, hair sticking up in tufts, dressed only in a pair of boxers. He crossed the living room, and yanked open the door to his flat, staring with blank amazement at the boy on his doorstep. What the fuck was Timothy Fawcett doing here? He barely knew the guy, who had been in Ravenclaw, and a year below James at school. He had been one of the many boys who used to hang around James' sister at school, and now he came to think of it, he thought that Lily might have gone on a few dates with the bloke recently. Not that that meant anything; Lily always had a date these days._

_There was a long silence, as James waited, increasingly impatiently, for the other young man to speak. Fawcett was dressed in a smart shirt and nice jeans, but he looked dishevelled, as though he hadn't slept much. _

"_What the hell, Fawcett?" James demanded eventually._

_Fawcett refused to meet his eyes._

"_Um… Is Lily here?"_

_James looked at the other man as though he had gone mad. _

"_No, Fawcett. My sister doesn't live here. What the hell do you want with her at this time in the morning, anyway?"_

_Fawcett didn't seem as though he particularly wanted to answer that._

"_Er…" he prevaricated, then took a deep breath, "Well, we were…sort of together last night…" James's face darkened and Fawcett hastened on, "I mean, in a bar. We went to a bar. And then… we had an argument. I… um, well, I sort of… left. Only then I felt bad, and I went back to find her, and she'd gone. And I don't know _where_ she'd have gone, and I was sort of… worried about her. I mean, I think she was a bit drunk. And it was quite late… I just thought she might have come back here. I mean, I don't want to see her, we're over. Completely over. I just…wanted to know she got back ok."_

_For a moment James stared at Fawcett, not quite sure what he had heard._

"_Let's get this straight, Fawcett," he said slowly, in the end, "You left my little sister, drunk, in a bar in London, at night, and now you don't know where she is?"_

_Fawcett looked angry._

"_Well, yes, but it wasn't my fault. Your little sister's a..."_

_The hex hit him before he could finish the sentence._

* * * *

In the end, it was only Lily and Sirius who set off for Hogwarts. James and the other Lily and Harry had no choice but to catch the portkey to Godric's Hollow, and as James said, it didn't really need four people to explain to Dumbledore. Lily was the important one.

The two Lilies had discovered that they were identical in terms of clothing size – "You must take after me," Lily Evans had said with a smile – and so Lily found herself dressed in a beautifully Retro outfit, venturing out into the London of 1980. Sirius had lent her a spare leather jacket and gloves, because he said she'd freeze otherwise. Lily Evans had also insisted on preparing sandwiches and pasties, telling them that it was a long journey and they were sure to get hungry.

The bike, when she saw it in daylight, was really quite magnificent. Sirius saw the expression on her face and smiled proudly.

"She's beautiful, isn't she?"

"She?" Lily raised her eyebrows at him.

"Of course," he nodded, "Don't you think she's definitely feminine?"

"If you say so," Lily agreed sceptically. He grinned.

"Well, jump on. I'll take you for a real ride this time."

"Sirius, we're going to Hogwarts," she said, looking at him in surprise. Did he really think that this was a good time for a quick jaunt?

"I know," he laughed at her, "But Hogwarts is a pretty long way, you know." Lily did know. Lily Evans had asked exasperatedly why they did not just apparate to Hogsmeade and walk up to the castle. Sirius had replied that this would be no fun. Lily had said nothing. She was not exactly sure that a long journey on a motorbike was going to be all that much fun. But on the other hand, she didn't want to demonstrate just how crap she was at apparating. So she had kept quiet, and Sirius had got his way.

"D'you want me behind or in front?" she asked dubiously.

He smirked provocatively at her.

"Well, where would you prefer, Miss Potter?"

She blushed and glared at him. Did this boy see innuendo in everything? Although she had rather walked into that one.

He wiped the grin off his face at her expression.

"Actually, behind's probably easier for me. If that's ok."

She nodded, and waited until he had climbed on, then she cautiously slung one leg in its acid washed denim over the seat.

"Um… you should probably hold on to me," he said. He sounded unsure of himself. Unseen, Lily smiled mischievously, thinking of a little revenge. The great Sirius Black embarrassed to ask a girl to put her arms around him? She scooted up to him, perhaps pressing a little closer than was really necessary, and wrapped her arms tightly around his waist.

"That ok?" she asked innocently.

She felt him stiffen slightly.

"Er… yeah, that's fine," he sounded slightly strangled. Interesting. She had always heard that Sirius Black had been a notorious flirt – and he had been flirting with her, unless she was much mistaken. Lily wasn't quite as clueless about such things as she had been at fourteen, and she could recognise flirting, even when it was as mild and harmless as Sirius's had been. But take it any further, or throw in some reciprocation, and he got all uncomfortable. It probably, she admitted to herself, had more than a little to do with the fact that she was his best friend's granddaughter, and not technically born yet.

"I sat in front of you last night," she called, as the bike roared off down the street, Muggle-style at the moment.

"Because I didn't want you to fall off in your drunken stupor," he retorted.

"I wasn't that drunk," she protested, and felt his mocking laugh vibrate through his shoulders.

They drove in silence for a few moments, then Sirius called.

"Now that you've told us everything anyway, is it okay to ask questions?"

"I suppose so," she replied guardedly, "I don't promise to answer them, though."

He chuckled.

"They're harmless, I promise. Most of them anyway. Who's Luna?"

"What?" she was startled.

"You said your name was Lily Luna. You're all named after people; your oldest brother's called after me and James, your other brother's Albus, presumably after Dumbledore. So where did Luna come from?"

"It's after my Aunt Luna," Lily said absently, "Well, she isn't really my aunt. Just one of my parents' best friends. Luna Scamander. They were at school with her, and she was one of the people… well, who fought Voldemort. She was there in the Deaprtment of Mysteries, when…" she broke off. His back tensed and he did not press her. He clearly knew what she had been going to say.

"She was Luna Lovegood then," Lily went on, and then added, "I shouldn't really tell you this. You're going to meet her some day, I think. You shouldn't know anything about her."

"Lovegood?" his shoulders relaxed and he sounded amused, "Any relation of Xeno Lovegood?"

"I think he was her father. Why, do you know him?"

"Yes, he was a couple of years ahead of me at Hogwarts. Completely insane. Started up some weird magazine when he was still at school. We all used to read it, just for a laugh. Full of crazy conspiracy theories. I think he's still running it."

Lily smiled.

"Yeah, well Luna's a bit weird too. In a good way though. Apparently she used to be weirder. Uncle Ron says she's perfectly normal compared to how she was at school. She's got a couple of twin boys, who just started Hogwarts last year."

"Lily…" something told her that this question was not going to be so inconsequential, "What happens to Wormtail?"

Lily was silent for a moment.

"He… dies," she said eventually, "After he's done plenty of damage."

"I don't kill him?" Sirius sounded disappointed.

"Fraid not," Lily told him, "He… sort of killed himself, actually. Although really, I suppose it was Voldemort's fault. Like a lot of things.

"What do you think would happen if I just killed him now? That would seem to solve a few problems…"

"Notably, your problem," Lily suggested dryly, "The problem that you desperately want to go and murder him, right?"

Sirius laughed ruefully.

"What's the worst that could happen?"

Lily sighed.

"We've already been through this. If Wormtail dies now, he won't be Secret Keeper…"

"He isn't going to be Secret Keeper anyway!" Sirius burst out. Lily didn't reply. She knew that Sirius knew why Peter Pettigrew should be allowed to live and betray his friends. He just didn't want to acknowledge it.

They drove in silence for a while. They were leaving the London suburbs behind by the time Sirius spoke again.

"You know, you've told us a lot of things, but I still know next to nothing about _you_. It can't hurt to talk about yourself, surely? I mean, you seem to know all my darkest secrets…"

"I doubt it," Lily said wryly, and he laughed.

"Well, okay, there are hopefully a few things you don't know. But you still know how my bedroom's decorated, for heaven's sake. Why not tell me a few things about yourself?"

"Well…" she giggled, "My bedroom's got plain cream walls, I'm afraid. They used to be pink when I was little; my brothers used to say they clashed with my hair. But I decided I wanted a change a few years ago. And there's a poster…"

"Oh, shut up," he said good-naturedly, "I don't want to know what colour your walls are. Tell me something real. Like, what do you do? You've left school, right?"

"Yes," she said, slightly put out that he thought she might be still at school, "I've finished school. I… don't really do anything though. I can't decide what I want to do. Everyone seems to think I ought to want to find a nice boy and settle down," her voice showed her distaste for this idea, and he laughed.

"I share your pain. People assume that a comfortable family life is the only thing that can really make anyone happy, don't they?"

"Mm," Lily agreed, "Although I think they'd be more supportive if I knew what I _did_ want to do. Mum keeps talking about careers and finding something that makes me happy. But I'm a hundred percent sure that none of the things she's come up with so far _would_ make me happy. So I just live at home most of the time, except when I come to London, or go and visit friends."

"Where is home?" he asked curiously, "Not still Grimmauld Place, I take it?"

"No," she shook her head, forgetting that he couldn't see her, "No offence, but I don't think Mum and Dad really liked living there. It… had quite a lot of memories. And it was too big. So we got a place in Barnstaple, in Devon, not too far away from Grandma and Granddad Weasley. They turned Number 12 into a hospice. It's a sort of branch of St Mungo's, where the people who're never going to be cured go. A bit more homey than living in a hospital for the rest of your life." She stopped, biting her lip. She had to be careful. Even the most innocent conversation risked bringing up something she mustn't talk about. She had been just about to tell Sirius about how Augusta Longbottom had left most of her money to the Phoenix Hospice when she died. But that would have led to talk about why Augusta had done that, which would have led to telling him about what had happened to Frank and Alice Longbottom, Uncle Neville's parents… Or had it already happened? No, it couldn't have. But it couldn't be long.

"What about what you do for fun?" he persisted, "You must do something to stop the boredom killing you."

"I… suppose so," Lily had to think about what she really did do, "Well, I mean, I go to London quite a bit. Shopping, and going for drinks with friends and things. I used to play a lot of Quidditch, but I don't often have anyone to play with these days. When I'm at home, I mostly do the cooking and stuff. Mum and Dad both work full time, so it's easier for me to do it when I'm at home. Dad says I can do the housework instead of paying rent."

"Don't you have any House Elves?"

"No," said Lily, quickly, "Mum and Dad don't really like the whole House Elf thing, even though the regulations are so much tighter these days… I mean, those days. I mean… I don't even know what I mean. I keep getting my tenses mixed up. I don't know which one to use."

Sirius laughed.

"I'm not sure there's really a right one to use, under the circumstances."

As soon as they were clear of the houses, Sirius glanced round. He had turned onto a narrow back lane, and there weren't many people around. He leaned down and pressed a button, and the bike began to lift off the ground.

"Sirius!" hisses Lily in horror, "There are people…"

"Not many," he laughed, "They'll get over it."

She stared at his back, remembering his reputation for breaking rules. Merlin, if he was caught doing this…

He glanced over his shoulder at her, grinning.

"Nervous? Don't worry, it'll level out in a minute, as soon as we're high enough."

She glared indignantly at him.

"I'm not nervous. I told you, I play Quidditch! A little bit of height doesn't scare me."

He glanced down at where her hands met at his front.

"Then why are you suddenly gripping me like a Devil's Snare?" He grinned cheekily over his shoulder again, "Not that I'm complaining."

"Good," she squeezed him a little harder, and heard him choke, before slackening her grip again, "It was mainly embarrassment that we were taking off on a flying bike in front of Muggles."

"Sure?" The motorbike did a sudden nosedive and Lily shrieked, and then smacked the laughing boy on the shoulder as it righted itself easily.

"Warn me next time you're going to do that! I could have fallen off!"

He only laughed some more, and she smacked him again.

"Bastard. Just remember, I'm sitting behind you with a wand, and your hands are busy with the bike. I could do horrible things to you from this vantage point if I wanted."

"You're already doing horrible things to me," he muttered. She almost did fall off the bike in shock.

"_What?_" she demanded, "What's that supposed to mean?"

He leaned over his shoulder to look at her sheepishly.

"Nothing. But riding this thing with an attractive girl plastered to my back and her arms and legs wrapped round me doesn't exactly make for great concentration. But I'm trying very hard to keep that kind of thought out of my head, because you are my best friend's granddaughter. And therefore totally out of bounds, even for thinking about, because that's just _weird_."

"Oh." Lily blushed and loosened her grip a little more and tried to shuffle back a bit. That manoeuvre wasn't very successful, because there wasn't really anywhere to shuffle to, and she simply slid back down again.

"Wriggling against me isn't really helping," said Sirius, sounding amused.

"Sorry," she said, unable to prevent a giggle.

"Cow," he muttered, but he didn't sound as though he meant it.

"So. You said you played Quidditch," he said, at last, making an obvious attempt to change the subject.

"Yes. Chaser," she told him, "I was on the Gryffindor team."

"You take after James," he told her with amusement, "He plays Chaser too. Captain of Gryffindor a few years ago."

"Not necessarily," Lily informed him, "My Mum played Chaser for the Holyhead Harpies. And she was Captain of Gryffindor too."

"Oh," he sounded surprised, "She was a professional? Impressive. What about… your dad? Does Harry play Quidditch?"

"Yes," she told him, "Dad got chosen as Seeker in his first year at Hogwarts. He was the youngest house player in a century. He was Captain before my mum."

"Wow," Sirius commented, "You need to tell James that, he'll be dead excited. So you've got amazing Quidditch genes from both sides. You must be pretty good yourself."

"Well… I'm not bad, I suppose," she said honestly, "But I'm nothing special. I think my brother got the Quidditch Genius Genes. He plays for England."

"Seriously?" Sirius twisted round in his seat and looked at her, "Bloody hell. I'm not sure you should tell James that one, he'll wet his pants with excitement. Which brother?"

"Jamie," she told him with amusement.

"Might have known," Sirius grinned, "With namesakes like his, he'd have to be something special. But… you call him Jamie?"

"Sometimes," she said vaguely, "Mostly only family and close friends call him that. Unless they're taking the piss."

Sirius laughed.

"Lily's the only person I've heard shorten James' name. She gets away with it. I don't think the rest of us would."

* * * *

A few hours later, and the conversation had languished. Lily felt stiff, and cold, and her bum ached. She also thought that she was going to need to pee soon, and wondered whether she could ask Sirius to stop. The wind had got up, and Sirius seemed to need all his attention for steering the bike, leaving none for conversation. The daylight had faded into darkness, and it must be after dinner time. They hadn't set off until mid afternoon, thanks to the leisurely start they had had to the day. She felt a heavy drop of rain on her face, and then another.

"Sirius!" she poked him in the back.

"Hmm?"

"It's raining!"

"I noticed," he said wryly.

"What are we going to do?"

"Well… I was thinking we'd probably have to stop for the night. I'm beginning to feel like I need a break. You probably are too. And I think we're in for a stormy night…"

As if in confirmation of his words, a heavy gust of wind made the bike swerve, and the rain came on properly in a sudden lashing downpour.

"Aargh!" Lily spluttered, as she got a faceful of it.

"All right," Sirius shouted above the rising sound of the weather, "Decision made. I can't ride the bike in this."

Indeed he seemed to be struggling to keep it under control, and Lily hung on rather tightly, as he aimed for the lights of a small town below them. They landed half in a hedge, but he steered them onto a little country lane, and down here the wind wasn't as strong. They came into the town in the normal, Muggle way.

"What are we going to do?" Lily asked again.

"Find somewhere to stay," Sirius told her.

"I haven't got any money," she said.

"Don't worry. I have."

"Muggle money?" she said incredulously.

He nodded.

"Yep. Be prepared, that's my motto."

She snorted.

"What?"

"Ever heard of the Boy Scouts, Sirius?"

"No. Sounds pretty dodgy. Why do they scout boys?"

"What? No! They don't scout boys, they _are_ boys. Who scout. 'Be Prepared' is their motto, that's all."

"Sounds weird," Sirius grumbled, "And they stole my motto."

It was a very small town. The road they were on wound up and down for about half a mile, before taking them onto the main street, which had a row of dark shop fronts. Lily hoped there would be somewhere to stay. They drove to the end of the main street, where it split into a fork. In the fork was a building labelled The Wheatsheaf Hotel, and Sirius steered into the carpark and stopped the bike. Lily, still half inclined to giggle at Sirius' interpretation of 'boy scouts', clambered off stiffly and staggered drunkenly. Sirius grabbed her arm, grinning.

"Careful."

She looked up at him.

"I'm soaked."

She was indeed soaked. Her red hair was plastered to her face and water was dripping down her collar. Her jeans were sodden, and clung uncomfortably. He was just as bad. Half his hair had come loose from its ponytail and was falling in his eyes. He grinned wildly at her.

"Come on. Quick."

He grabbed her hand, and began to run, pulling her after him. They slammed in through the door of the hotel, breathless, laughing and soaking wet.

**A/N: Okay, what do you guys think? Sorry to any James/Lily Evans fans – I couldn't deal with them being major characters in the story I'm afraid. Having two Lilies was driving me mad, and we now have another James too. Also, Harry's presence needed to be lost – lovely though babies are, in reality they automatically take over any scene they are in, and that was just going to get in the way.**

**What do people think about the slight sexual tension between Sirius and Lily? It felt sort of inevitable – they are both young, very attractive, natural flirts, who have been thrown into quite an, er, intimate situation. It would have been OOC for them **_**not**_** to want to flirt with each other, although Sirius feels a sort of responsibility for Lily, and so he's doing his best to be restrained.**

**Question is, how far should they take it? They **_**are**_** going to have to share a hotel room – sex is something they've both had plenty of and neither of them is a stranger to the one night stand. There are inevitably going to be… thoughts there, and I'm afraid neither of them is exactly the most responsible person. But should anything happen? Would it be too weird/cliché? Tell me what you want to see… (whatever happens, it won't be graphic. This story is staying T rated)**


	5. The Games you play at Sleepovers

**Disclaimer: I do not own JKR's characters or world**

In the reception of the small hotel, there was a middle-aged woman sitting behind a desk, who eyed them severely as they came in through the door, still half laughing. Sirius approached her, smiling his most aristocratic smile, which was slightly offset by his rocker style and bedraggled appearance.

"Good evening," he said politely, "I wonder if you have any rooms spare for tonight?"

Her expression did not unbend in the slightest.

"We haive _one_ raem fair taeneet."

"Wonderful! We'll take it!" Sirius beamed at her, "The name's Black. Sirius and Lily Black."

Lily opened her mouth to dispute this outrageous lie, and then closed it again. She had to remember that she was nearly fifty years in the past. In 2027, nobody would bat an eyelid at an unmarried couple sharing a hotel room, but in 1980, the Wizarding World, at any rate, was far more conservative, and that was the only world Sirius knew.

The woman looked suspiciously at Lily's hand, from which the absence of a wedding ring was conspicuous.

Sirius surreptitiously pulled his wand out and murmured _"Obliviate_". The woman's eyes glazed over.

"_Sirius_!" hissed Lily angrily. But he was still smiling winningly at the woman, who was frowning in a slightly puzzled way.

"Oh… Oh, aye," she muttered, "Mr and Mrs Black. Tha's reet. Room number seven. Your key." She handed over the key and Sirius took it, still smiling.

"Thank you very much," and he grabbed Lily's hand again and pulled her through the foyer. Once they were through the door, she snatched her hand out of his, but said nothing. She was annoyed, but he had probably just got them a room the easiest way he could have done.

The room itself seemed dingy and ugly to Lily's eyes. It's 1980, she reminded herself; things are different. Sirius did not seem to mind, but shut the door behind them, and shook his head vigorously, showering Lily with drops of water.

"Sirius, do you have to act like a dog even when you're in human form?" she demanded crossly.

"Sorry."

She rolled her eyes and performed a drying spell on herself. It wasn't a very good one, and she found her clothes still fairly damp. He laughed at her, flicked his wand, and she was instantly bone dry. She scowled at him. Was he good at _everything_? He'd done it non-verbally too, which could only be showing off.

"Thanks," she muttered, a little grudgingly.

He grinned at her and performed the same spell on himself, then flopped down on the bed. She looked at him, wondering if he had realised that they would be sharing the double bed tonight.

"Remind me again why we didn't just Apparate?" she asked, "In fact, why can't we just Apparate now? We could come back in a few hours and collect the bike…"

He looked uncomfortable.

"I don't like Apparating," he muttered. She lifted her eyebrows. She didn't much like it herself, but surely it was preferable to spending the best part of two days getting to a place, and paying for a hotel room into the bargain? He saw the look on her face, and looked even more uncomfortable.

"Actually… James knows this, but Lily doesn't and don't you dare tell her… I never managed to pass my test. I don't have a license."

"Well, you don't have a license to be an Animagus either," she pointed out, "But it doesn't seem to have stopped you..."

He shifted slightly.

"Yeah, well… that's different. I like being an Animagus. And I'm good at it. I'm not good at Apparition. I've never managed to do it without splinching myself. Last time I left both my arms behind. I gave up after that. Not something I want to repeat," he looked up at her from his position on the bed, "Pathetic, I know."

She smothered a smile. So there _was_ something he was bad at. A shame it was something she was bad at too, so she couldn't even enjoy the knowledge properly.

"Not really," she told him casually, "It took me six attempts to pass. I can do it without splinching myself now, but I always miss where I'm supposed to be, if that makes you feel any better."

He grinned reluctantly.

"A little bit."

She sat down on the bed.

"Well, if we're stuck here for the night, how about some food then? I doubt if there's anywhere open round here at this time of night, so we'd better start on the sandwiches."

"Good idea," he sat up eagerly, as she summoned the bag from where he'd dumped it by the door.

"That was lazy," he told her.

"I didn't notice you leaping up to fetch it," she retorted.

She reached inside and pulled out the packages of sandwiches Lily Evans had made. Then she frowned, reached in again, and pulled out several bottles of Butterbeer and some Firewhisky.

"Sirius… did you pack these?"

He grinned.

"Yeah. Problem?"

Her lips twitched.

"No, not really. Although there's quite a lot of Firewhisky there. Did you plan on drinking it _while_ you were flying that bike?"

"No, I told you. I already thought we'd have to stay the night somewhere. And I thought it would probably be somewhere we couldn't get proper drinks… so I thought I'd bring some along."

"Muggle drinks are quite 'proper' you know," she told him, "In fact, generally they're stronger than ours. I'd only had Muggle drinks last night."

"Nothing beats some good Firewhisky though," he said confidently.

As they ate, he seemed to be thinking, and the carefree smile faded into a frown.

"What do you think Dumbledore's going to say?" he asked at last, after they had been silent for some time. Her heart sank at the question.

"I don't know." _But I suspect we may not like it_.

Sirius had agreed to be Secret Keeper in the end. They had not yet performed the Fidelius Charm, as it had to be performed in situ, but the plan was for him to go to Godric's Hollow straight from Hogwarts. He still didn't seem all that happy with the arrangement though, and Lily, having overheard parts of a whispered conversation between him and James before they left, suspected that the idea of her being Secret Keeper wasn't quite as dead as she'd have liked it to be.

She watched him carefully as he was eating. He wasn't as carefree as he pretended to be most of the time. None of them were, in this time. The fear and the danger were constant. It made her realise just how lucky she was to have been born when she had been, and then made her think, with a terribly guilty feeling, about how she might have destroyed that happy future.

He glanced up and grinned.

"Can't keep your eyes off me, Lily?"

She rolled her eyes, giving up on trying to keep up with his rapid mood changes.

"You wish!" she retorted, wishing she could have thought of something a little more original. In fact, he _was_ quite pleasant to look at, she thought. Not that she remotely fancied him, because he was, quite literally, the same age as her grandfather. But there was no harm in looking, and he was very… well, if she was honest, he was _hot_.

She glanced at him again, and he was still watching her. He still looked amused but… was there something else in his eyes?

"Now who's staring at who?" she sniped, and was surprised to see him go darkly red.

After a bit, he got up and walked to the window. Outside, the weather was getting worse. Wind howled against the window pane, and the rain was lashing down. It was a real storm. Sirius sighed, and Lily looked towards him.

"What?"

"I'm bored," he said simply.

"Thanks," she retorted, "Nice to know I'm such good company."

"I didn't mean it like that."

She laughed at him.

"Well, we could always go down to the hotel bar."

He pulled a face.

"Nah, we'd just have to be careful what we were saying all the time. And I couldn't get drunk, because I'm _not_ careful when I'm drunk, and there's no point going to a bar if I can't get drunk."

"I don't know what you want to do then," she said, "We can hardly go out in that rain again."

He raised his eyebrows at her.

"Don't you like the rain?"

"No, I don't" she said firmly, "Do you?"

"Sometimes," he grabbed her arm and pulled her to stand beside him at the window, "Look at it. Don't you think there's something beautiful about it?"

She looked up at him in surprise, then out at the storm. The lamps lit the street outside, and rain seethed down in gusts. A tree on the other side of the road thrashed wildly in the wind. Beyond the tops of the buildings, the hills that the town was nestled under were visible, silhouetted against the slightly lighter sky; eerie and lonely and wild. He was right. There was a kind of strange beauty about it.

She nodded.

"It's… impressive. Almost frightening. But, beautiful, yeah," she agreed softly, "I still wouldn't want to be out in it though," she added.

He laughed.

"Come on, Lily. That's part of the fun. Once you get out there, with the rain in your face and the wind getting into your head, you just want to run and shout… or bark."

She rolled her eyes.

"You go running in the rain as a dog?"

"Well, yeah," he grinned, "It's much better than doing it as a human. No clothes to get wet, no falling over in the dark… You can just go for it and never mind getting soaked..."

"Well, excuse me if I don't join you in your wild wet romp," she remarked sarcastically.

He stared at her for a moment, startled, his mouth slightly open, as she realised what sort of image she'd conjured. Then she giggled reluctantly, and he grinned.

"Mind in the gutter, Mr Black," she told him, with mock annoyance.

"You're the one who said it, Miss Potter," he smirked at her, "Although I do think it would be more fun if you _did_ join me…"

She smacked him on the arm, fairly hard, and he broke off.

"Let's play a game," he announced suddenly, turning away from the window and bouncing onto the bed.

"What kind of game?" she asked warily.

"Truth or Dare?" he suggested, "That's the sort of thing you normally play at sleepovers, isn't it?"

"Sleepovers?" she looked sceptically at him, "_How_ old are you?"

He grinned.

"I'm twenty-one. Why, how old are you?"

She rolled her eyes.

"I didn't mean your literal age. But I'm nineteen if you really want to know."

"Excellent," he smiled cheerfully at her, "Now we've got that out of the way, how about that game?"

"I'm not sure we're in the best place for dares, Sirius," she said, dubiously, "I mean, there are only two of us here, we don't want to get kicked out or let the Muggles see us doing magic, and we can't leave the hotel… I can see the dares being a bit limited."

"Okay they, how about just Truth? We get to take turns asking questions, and the other one has to answer honestly."

She shook her head at him.

"I think you're really about thirteen. And a girl. Or do boys play these games as well?"

"Not at thirteen," he grinned, "Our conversations don't tend to go very deep."

"Oh, because this is a really deep conversation," she muttered sarcastically, "No, but seriously, I don't think I can, Sirius. There are still things I can't tell you. Lots of them."

"Oh, yeah… I wasn't thinking about things like that though. Not important things. I'll try and avoid them, okay? And you have the power of veto if I ask something you can't tell me. And if you want, we could make it more grown up, by… oh, I don't know… drinking some of that Firewhisky while we play?"

She smiled reluctantly, his mood infectious.

"Okay then. I suppose. But I'll just have a Butterbeer, thanks. I was drunk enough last night to put me off strong drinks for a while."

"No abusing the veto though," he warned her, throwing her a Butterbeer and helping himself to the bottle of Firewhisky, "It's only for things you really think I mustn't know, not just for things you don't want to tell me."

She rolled her eyes again.

"Don't worry, Sirius. I'm a pretty open person. I've already told you half my secrets."

"Okay," he smiled wickedly at her, "How old were you when you got your first proper kiss?"

"I think I can see the direction these questions are headed in," she commented wryly, sliding down until she was sitting on the floor, and opening the bottle with a flick of her wand, "But if you think you're going to embarrass me that easily, you're wrong," she took a drink from the bottle, pulled a face and flicked her wand again, changing the drink from tepid to properly warm, "I was nine."

"What?" he yelped, staring at her in apparent horror, "I said _proper_ kiss, you know. Not just a peck on the lips. A proper snog..."

"Yeah, I understood you," she said calmly, "Still nine, I'm afraid."

"How did that happen?" he asked with fascination, "Who was it with? Did you _enjoy _it?"

"That's three more questions and it's not your turn," she said, "But I'm not sure what you're so shocked about. How old were _you_?"

"Is that your question?" he demanded. She thought about it.

"Yes, I s'pose it may as well be."

He threw himself back on his bed, and put one arm behind his head, then looked thoughtfully over at the table in the corner, where there were two mugs. Evidently deciding that fetching one over was too much effort, he took a drink straight from the bottle, before finally answering the question.

"Erm, can't compete with you, I'm afraid. And it sort of depends on what you call _proper_…"

"Stop stalling," she said, grinning, "And you were the one who came up with the question first. You decide what counts as _proper_."

"Okay… well, I suppose I was thirteen. Although that might be stretching the whole 'proper' thing a bit. We did our best. But I should think we did at least as well as you at nine, so I suppose that one counts. At least we'd _started_ puberty."

She giggled.

"So I beat the great Sirius Black to a first kiss."

He turned his head and looked at her, taking another drink, his blue-grey eyes laughing.

"Am I so legendary that my memory lives on for fifty years?"

She smirked.

"Oh, there are plenty of stories. I'm not sure you'd want to hear them though."

He laughed, propping himself up on his elbows and looking at her, where she sat cross-legged under the window.

"Why are you sitting on the floor?" he asked.

"Er…because somebody else is lying sprawled on the bed, and there isn't anywhere else?" she suggested, "That was a crap question..."

"That wasn't my question," he protested, "That doesn't count," he hitched himself closer to the headboard and curled his long legs up, "Come and sit down."

The floor was mildly uncomfortable, so she joined him on the bed, leaning against the wooden foot board and stretching out her legs beside him, the Butterbeer making her pleasantly warm inside.

"Okay, my turn," he said, and then, as she looked as though she might protest, repeated "That one definitely didn't count." He closed his eyes lazily, and knocked back the bottle again. He was drinking it fairly fast, she noticed, considering that it was quite potent stuff, but he didn't seem to be feeling the effects yet.

"Right. Have you ever kissed another girl or woman? Romantic or sexual kiss, so your mum doesn't count."

"You have a filthy mind," she told him sternly, "Why are all your questions related to sex?"

"I haven't asked a single question about sex," he said, without opening his eyes, "Yet. And what other sort of question is there to ask? There's nothing interesting about, I don't know, asking what your favourite food is."

"Well, I can think of plenty of interesting questions that have nothing to do with sex _or_ kissing. But the answer is no, actually. Sorry to disappoint you. Have you?"

"What? Kissed a girl?" he asked, opening his eyes and looking at her with amusement.

She glared at him.

"No. Kissed a man."

"Is that your question? I thought you could think of things that weren't about kissing. So far, you haven't thought of any at all. You've just repeated mine."

"Tough," she said, "I'll do a different one next time. I want to know this one now. Have you?"

"Um… Maybe," he said cautiously, and she noticed that he had gone slightly red.

"It's nothing to be ashamed of," she said solemnly, her eyes dancing, "I mean, if that's the way you are…"

"No!" he jerked into a sitting position, and saw that she was laughing at him, "I mean, I know it's nothing to be ashamed of. I wouldn't be ashamed of it, if I was. But I'm not. I was drunk, okay? Lots of things seem like a good idea when you're drunk."

She giggled at him.

"I'd love to know what the other things were. But it's your turn, so I'll just have to imagine."

He glared at her.

"Well, I hate to spoil your imaginings… but nothing like that. Okay, here's one. What's the most embarrassing thing that's ever happened to you?"

She looked thoughtful.

"You mean other than my grandfather and his friend finding me collapsed on the ground, dead drunk…?"

"And in the shortest skirt you could possibly imagine," Sirius finished, "Yeah, other than that."

"Well… probably the time in Third Year, when my potion exploded and made all my hair disappear. It took Madam Booth a week to work out how to regrow it, and I had to go round bald until she did. My brothers thought it was hilarious. I didn't, so much. I insisted on keeping a hat on the whole time, but of course everybody knew what had happened."

He choked with laughter and eyed her curiously.

"I wonder what you'd look like with no hair."

"Awful," she said with conviction, "I've seen me, so I know."

"Oh, I don't know," he said thoughtfully, "I'm not sure it would be so bad. I mean, it would be a shame, because your hair's quite nice, but…" he broke off suddenly, "Anyway, good answer. Your turn."

"Okay. I've always wondered. What was it that made you a Gryffindor, when you were brought up the way you were? I mean, were you always just… different? Or was there something that changed you, or what?"

"Wow," he looked at her, slightly surprised, "We're getting deep. I keep forgetting that you know a hell of a lot more about me than I do about you. Well, I suppose…" he considered the question, "I was always a _bit_ different. But I might just be thinking that now, looking back on it. I mean, hindsight's a wonderful thing, but when you're little, you just take things for granted, don't you?

"I was never exactly the best behaved kid though. I wanted to break out and rebel all the time - I was always in trouble. My parents weren't… the kindest people, when they were angry, and they were angry with me quite a lot. So I suppose I didn't grow up very close to them. And I never took anything seriously, especially the things they cared about. I mean, I didn't really question it, not when I was little. The whole 'purebloods are superior' thing and all that shit, I mean. I'd never met anyone except purebloods, so what did I know? But they were all so… I don't know, so cold and... and stiff, and obsessed with manners and reputation and having the right ambitions. I just wanted to have fun," his voice had taken on a different tone as he thought his way back into what had obviously not been the happiest childhood.

"And then Regulus was such a smarmy little bastard," he added, "it just made me want to be as different as I could be, just to show them all. And my cousins…" he shuddered slightly, "Bellatrix was always a psychopath. I was terrified of her when I was little. And Narcissa was always sarcastic and looked down on everyone, including me. The only one I liked was Andromeda, and she used to tell me that the Muggle-borns weren't so bad, and that being happy was more important than being rich and successful and traditional. I suppose I looked up to her quite a lot. She was the only person who didn't treat me like a complete waste of space, and didn't either shout at me or sneer at me the whole time. So that sort of started it, listening to her.

"And I remember after I got my Hogwarts Letter, Dad sat me down for a serious talk, and told me all about the Black reputation, and how important it was that I, the firstborn son, should uphold our old traditions. He told me all about how every member of the family had been in Slytherin – which I already knew, because he went on about it a lot – and what that meant, and how the Slytherin ideals were our ideals; all about being ambitious, and using my brains to get ahead, and furthering the cause of the purebloods… And I just remember thinking, this isn't me. This is all too heavy for me. I don't care about the _pureblood cause_. I don't care if people have Muggle parents; that doesn't make me hate them. I just want to enjoy myself.

"That was about as far as I'd got by the time I went to Hogwarts, to be honest," he finished, "But then the Sorting Hat put me in Gryffindor, and I met James and the others, and realised that the whole 'pureblood cause' thing was even less me that I'd thought..."

There was a short silence when he'd finished speaking, then Lily said:

"Sorry. I didn't mean to…"

"No, that's okay," he said quickly, "Honestly. I don't have a problem with talking about it."

"Your turn now," she said, with a slight smile, "And feel free to be just as insensitive."

"Okay," he thought for a moment, then grinned, and she noticed that he had downed a good third of the bottle of Firewhisky. She herself had finished her Butterbeer, and was feeling the usual relaxed sensation. It wasn't the same as being drunk, but she hoped vaguely that it wouldn't make her reveal anything she shouldn't.

"How many people have you had sex with?" he demanded, "Assuming you're not a virgin…"

She glared at him, the familiar crawling feeling she always got when people said things like that attacking her chest. No, don't be stupid Lily, she thought to herself. He wasn't having a go at her, the way people normally were, she realised. He genuinely wouldn't care that she had gone through a lot of boyfriends. But she had to think to be sure of the answer. She frowned a little, going over them in her head.

"Um… nine," she said at last, "No, ten. No, eleven."

His eyebrows had shot up at the first number, then he had grinned as she corrected it. His grin faded a little as she gave the final figure. He waited for a moment.

"That's it?" he said, "Not going to remember another one?"

"No," she muttered, her cheeks on fire, "That's it."

"Right," he stared at the ceiling, "That's, um… quite impressive. For nineteen."

Her heart sank. Was he going to judge her after all? Then he looked at her, and she realised he was fighting back laughter. There was surprise in his face, but also… something like admiration. He didn't look like he was thinking that she was a whore.

"It's okay," she said with a sigh, "You can laugh."

He grinned.

"I'm only laughing because you couldn't remember," he assured her, "I thought I was the only one who lost track of things like that. James gets all annoyed by me; says it's disrespectful to the women I'm with. But that's just because Lily's only the second girl he's ever shagged…"

"Hoi! That's my grandparents you're talking about!" she broke in, with a giggle.

"Well," he said happily, "I feel better now."

"What do you mean?" she frowned, puzzled.

He chuckled.

"You bruised my ego by having your first kiss so much younger than me. But I've had sex with more people than you, so that's okay."

"Well, you do have an extra two years on me," she pointed out, "Who knows what number I'll be on by the time _I_ reach twenty one?"

She could joke about it with him. He didn't care. It didn't matter. It wasn't something to be embarrassed about. And that was a very liberating feeling.

"Well," she went on, "I was tempted to ask you the same question, but as you just told me that it's more than eleven anyway, I'm not sure I need to know in any more detail. So… what's the most meaningful relationship you've ever been in? Who was it with, how long did it last, and why did it end?"

"That's more than one question," he pointed out, "If I answer them, you have to answer my multiple question from before: how come you were kissing somebody at nine?"

"Fair enough."

"Not that it's anything that interesting," he went on, as she had agreed, "I don't do very meaningful relationships. But… I did go out with Tina Monroe for quite a while, the year after I finished Hogwarts. One of the few exclusive relationships I've been in. James and Remus couldn't believe it; I was actually turning down invitations from them, so I could go and see Tina," he smiled slightly, "But to answer the rest of your questions. It lasted five months, and then it just fizzled out.

"She wanted me to grow up. I didn't. We started getting on each other's nerves, and eventually she found somebody who preferred nice nights in and civilised cocktail bars to crazy rock concerts and wild rampages in the rain; somebody who didn't run like hell in the other direction every time she talked about the future together. And I rediscovered that it was quite nice to be able to get very drunk once in a while without having to worry about what your girlfriend was going to say, and to go for motorbike rides without being shouted at. She hated the bike," he smiled at Lily, "Sorry. Nothing very dramatic or exciting. What made you ask that?"

"Oh, I just wondered."

Wondered whether he had ever _had_ a meaningful relationship; if he had ever had real feelings for a girl. In all the stories her father had told her about Sirius, his love life had never really featured. It was well known that he had been a ladies' man, but had he ever held deeper feelings for anyone? She wasn't sure whether that question was really answered, even now. He didn't sound very upset about the ending of his relationship with this Tina, but who knew what he had felt at the time? And she realised that her wording had probably excluded any unrequited, or un-acted on, feelings he might have had.

"Your turn to answer," he knocked back some more of his Firewhisky.

She giggled.

"Well… nothing spectacular there either. It was a boy called David Lewis – his dad worked with mine. My brothers had gone off to Hogwarts, and me and Davy used to play together sometimes. He was a year older than me. And to answer your questions from before, it happened because he asked me if he could kiss me and I said yes, and no, I didn't really enjoy it. I don't think he did either. He admitted to me that he'd heard his older sister talking about kissing some boy, and he'd wondered what it was like. We both agreed that it wasn't as good as grown-ups seemed to think, and decided that we'd never bother doing it again. We also agreed never to tell anyone, so I just broke a very serious promise..."

"I don't count," his voice sounded a little slurred, and she wondered if he was finally getting drunk, "Where Davy what's-his-name is, I'm dead."

She laughed.

"Well, you're not likely to go telling anybody we know, that's true. Are you drunk, Sirius?"

"No," he said with dignity, "Well…" he looked at her, eyes dancing, "not really. A tiny bit tipsy maybe."

"Well, I think you should stop drinking," she told him, "We should get an early start tomorrow. And you have to be in a fit state to drive the bike."

"I will be," he assured her, then looked thoughtfully at the half empty bottle, "But maybe I should stop drinking now. We ought to get some sleep actually. We're only about half way to Hogwarts. I think."

"Um…" she glanced at him and then at the bed. She had borrowed, as well as everything else, some clean underwear and a spare toothbrush from Lily Evans, because they had known that they would have to stay overnight somewhere. She had, however, assumed that 'somewhere' would be Hogwarts, or perhaps at the Three Broomsticks in Hogsmeade, and that she would have her own room, and could stick to her usual habit, which was to sleep in nothing. That was obviously not an option here.

"I didn't bring any pyjamas," she said, dolefully, "And there's no way I can sleep in jeans."

"Oh," he eyed her, and his mouth curved into a lazy smile, "Well… I'll look the other way when you get undressed."

She looked severely at him.

"_And_," she placed a hand emphatically on the bed between them, "That is the half way mark. That side of the bed is yours, and this side is mine. And we keep to our own sides, okay?"

"Okay," he agreed meekly, his lips twitching.

She swung her legs off the bed.

"Oh, and another thing…"

"What?"

She grinned at him.

"Bags me the bathroom first."

And before he could protest, she grabbed the toothbrush out of the bag, scooted across the room into the little en suite bathroom, and slammed the door behind her, hearing his laughing "_Hey!_" from the other side.

She looked at herself in the mirror, realising with dismay that though his spell might have dried her hair, it had not smoothed out the tats and tangles that had come from their wild ride in the rain. Quickly, she muttered the relevant spells, fastened it back in a simple ponytail for the night, and then cleaned her teeth. Well, this was an interesting situation. She was willing to bet that most girls – in this time, at least, and very probably in her own too – would have given a lot to be sharing a hotel bed with Sirius Black, and she couldn't really blame them. In usual circumstances – in other words, if he were not, in fact, Sirius Black, but just someone else who looked and behaved like this – she might have been rather pleased at the prospect herself. But the bizarreness of it all was just starting to wear her out.

She had put no make-up on that morning, so her bathroom routine was shorter than usual, and she emerged to find him once more standing by the window, this time without his shirt. She tried, without much success, not to look at his chiselled back.

"Your turn," she muttered, and he smiled at her as he went past her into the bathroom, apparently unaware of the effect he was having.

Once he was safely inside with the door closed behind him, she sat on the edge of the bed, closed her eyes and tried not to groan out loud. This was going to be harder than she had thought. No, Lily. Don't be stupid.

"Sirius!" she called, when she had control of herself again.

"Uuh?" his voice came back, sounding as though he had a toothbrush in his mouth.

"Don't come out now. I'm getting undressed."

And if he took that as his cue to walk out, she'd kill him, she thought, stripping her jeans off quickly. She hesitated, then decided she couldn't sleep with a bra on, and wriggled it off without taking the t-shirt off, just in case. That would have to do. Once she was under the covers, he wouldn't be able to see anything, and he probably wouldn't notice that she had nothing on under the t-shirt; it wasn't as though she were particularly large in the breast department.

"Can I come out yet?" his voice came, and she quickly slipped into bed, making sure she was covered below the waist.

"You can now," she replied, and he emerged, still topless. He grinned at her, as she couldn't help but sneak a look.

"I'm going to get undressed now, too."

"Oh, right, yeah," she looked away quickly, and was aware, out of the corner of her eye, of him pulling his own jeans off. Of course, he wouldn't want to sleep in them either. He was now wearing only boxer shorts, and seemed entirely unembarrassed about it. It wasn't fair, she thought crossly, that men could walk round in their underwear and still be relatively decent.

He looked enquiringly at her.

"Is that t-shirt all you're wearing?"

She glared at him.

"No," she said, shortly, and didn't enlighten him further, "But just you remember. _That_ is your side of the bed. At least try and be a gentleman."

"Okay, okay," he slid into bed and lay back, his arms behind his head, "But you know," he said conversationally, "I'm not really the 'gentleman' type. You want Remus for that, or even James these days."

"I'd noticed," she said, sarcastically.

He laughed. "Oh, I promise you, you've seen the gentlemanly side of me so far, Lily. I'm usually _much_ worse than this…"

There was a pregnant pause, during which Lily decided that it would be a bad idea to ask what he meant by that comment.

"Lily," he said, eventually.

"Hm?" it had been too much to hope for that he would just go to sleep.

"Do you know how to switch the lights off? I didn't see what you did to turn them on."

"Oh," She giggled, "Have you honestly never used a Muggle light switch before? Not that we need to…" she grabbed her wand off the bedside table, pointed it at the switch that was over by the door, and flicked it. The switch flipped over, and the light went out.

"How do Muggles do it?" he asked, intrigued, "And how did you know?"

"By hand, of course," she replied, "And I took Muggle Studies to NEWT level. Although, actually, I've known how to use a Muggle light switch since before I started at Hogwarts. My dad's cousin's a Muggle. We go and visit him sometimes."

"Really?" Sirius sounded fascinated, "I knew Lily had a sister, but I didn't think they were on speaking terms."

"They probably aren't," Lily said shortly, "Aunt Petunia wants nothing to do with any of us. But Dad gets on okay with Dudley these days. I mean, he's a bit of an arse, but he is family, I suppose. I think he thinks of us in much the same way. We have to pretend to be Muggles when we go there, because his wife doesn't know about us. He always seems terrified that one of us is going to slip up and do something by mistake. To be honest, I'm not quite sure why we do go, but Dad insists."

They lay in silence for a while, and Lily began to think that the Firewhisky had sent him off to sleep. She herself felt a long way from sleep, even though she was tired. Her muscles were stiff from the long bike ride, and she was dreading the rest of it the next day. And when they got to Hogwarts… no, she wouldn't think of that. She'd think of… what would she thing of? There didn't seem to be anything that wouldn't just keep her awake. She sighed and turned over. It was going to be a long night at this rate.


	6. Laughing and Crying

**Disclaimer: I do not own JKR's characters or world**

**A/N: Ok, it took me less time than I thought to edit this one. Sorry, it's another chapter entirely of fluff. Hopefully you guys like fluff. This and the last chapter were all going to be one, but I decided it was too long, so I split it.**

**I posted two chapters in one night, soooo…. I deserve some reviews, right?**

"Lily," his voice was hardly more than a breath in the darkness, "Are you asleep?"

"No," she turned her head to look at him. All she could see in the darkness was a faint silhouette of his form underneath the bedclothes, but he seemed to be lying on his back, one arm still behind his head, looking at the ceiling.

"Lily," the slight arrogance that usually tinged his voice was entirely lacking and he sounded hesitant and… vulnerable, "Can I ask one more question?"

"If it's about my sex life, no," she said, a little teasingly, hoping to change his mood back again. It sort of worked, in that he laughed a little bit, but his laugh didn't sound quite convincing.

"When I escape from Azkaban," he said, not allowing her to distract him, "I… am I… okay?"

In the darkness, he heard the rustle of sheets as she turned her body to look at him.

"Well… depends what you mean by okay. I'm not going to tell you that you come waltzing out with a grin on your face and pick up exactly where you left off, no damage done."

"No, but…" he sounded a little desperate, and there was a catch in his voice, "I know what they say about Azkaban. People go mad in there within a few months. And I… I have to spend twelve years there," there was definitely a panicky edge to his voice now, "How can I possibly come out sane?"

"Well you do," she said, trying to speak rationally, to calm him down, "I'm not saying you don't come out… changed. But you're not mad, I promise you that."

There was a short silence.

"Once," he said, at last, "When I was thirteen, my father shut me in the cellar and left me there for six hours. I knew there was nothing down there that could actually hurt me. I knew Dad was only trying to teach me a lesson and that he'd let me out eventually. I even knew that for most of the time, Regulus was sitting outside the door, listening, hoping I'd start screaming. But when you're down there in the pitch black, and the door's locked, the things you _know_ go out the window. Metaphorically, obviously. There wasn't a window. But I tell you, I've never spent a longer six hours in my life. It was hell. And since then, I've had nightmares about being locked up in small dark spaces. Locked up with nothing but your fear and your misery to keep you company. It's the one thing that really terrifies me; being shut up. Caged. And that's without dementors thrown in. Six hours in the cellar seemed like a lifetime. And… and I… have to spend twelve _years_ in that place? I'd go mad on the first _day._ I'm twenty one, Lily. By the time I come out, I'll be, what, thirty three, thirty four? That's the whole of my twenties, just… gone. Twelve years of my life, when I should be having fun, and… and doing all the things I've got planned. The thought of that…" his voice broke a little and she heard the sob catch in it, "Oh, Merlin Lily, I'm scared. I'm fucking scared."

He was breathing unevenly, evidently trying to keep some semblance of control over himself. She guessed that these were the thoughts that had been in his mind, in all those moments that his grin had slipped and the sober expression had come over his face, ever since she had told him his fate that morning. It had taken until now, with his tongue loosened by the alcohol and his face masked by the darkness, for it to come out.

Guilt and pity clenching her gut, she reached out a hand and found his shoulder, startling slightly when she encountered bare flesh. Of course, he had taken his shirt off.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have told you," she whispered.

"No," he shook his head violently, "What else could you have done? Anyway, I practically made you tell me. At least this way, there's a chance to make sure it doesn't happen. To save James and Lily…"

And how would that change the life she had, back home? She still felt a little dizzy when she thought of it. She didn't really _want_ to change her own life. It wasn't a bad one, as lives went. Although there was no way she could just go back to it and forget about what had happened in the last twenty four hours.

"They _can't_ die," he choked out, suddenly, "I can't manage without them, especially James. I mean, I'm fond of Lily and all that, but James… James is like my brother. More than my brother. I haven't been close to my real brother for years… James _is_ my real brother…" he broke off and rolled over suddenly, so that his face was buried in the pillows.

"Sirius…" she said helplessly, not knowing the right words to say. Timidly, she rested her hand on his arm again. His shoulders were shaking slightly, and somehow the words didn't seem to matter anymore. Lily Potter could be many things, including thoughtless, irresponsible and tactless, but when somebody was suffering, she had the instincts of her Grandma Weasley. Without thinking, she shifted up close to him and put an arm across his shoulders.

"Sirius, I'm sorry… I'm so sorry."

For a few moments, they simply lay there, her arm around him. Words were unnecessary after all. Then he took a long breath.

"No. I'm sorry," he muttered into the pillow, "Making a fool of myself. I'm drunk."

She half smiled into the darkness, sadly.

"I don't think you have to be drunk, _or_ a fool to cry when your best friend might be going to die. Or to be scared at the thought of twelve years in prison…"

He turned suddenly, so that he was on his side, facing her, and suddenly he was very, very close…

"This is weird," he murmured, and she could feel his breath on her face.

She felt her cheeks heating up, and moved a little further away from him, removing her arm from his shoulders.

"Um, yeah…" she agreed.

"No," the corner of his mouth twitched upwards just slightly, "Well, this is weird too. Sharing a bed with a girl and _not_ doing anything about it, I mean… But what I meant was… I don't normally break down like this. I mean, I've been scared before. We all have. But I never show it. I'm Sirius Black, the one who laughs when he wants to cry. The one who makes jokes when he's staring Death in the face. I don't _admit_ that I'm scared, not ever. The people who've seen me like this – who've watched me break down – who I've let past the barriers… I can count them on my fingers. And most of those aren't people I've _let _past the barriers anyway, they're people who've broken past them, or watched while other people have… And yet I met you less than twenty four hours ago, and I'm spilling my heart out to you."

"Yeah, well," she blushed again, "I seem to have that effect on people. I don't know why. My friend Meri's the one you should go to for good advice. I'm hopeless. I can't manage my own life, let alone anyone else's. But somehow, people want to confide in me."

"Oh well," he joked, his spirits obviously recovering a little, "At least I'm not alone in it."

"Who are the others?" she asked suddenly.

"What?" he sounded startled.

"The other people who've… seen past the barriers," she smiled a little, "It _is_ my turn to ask a question."

"Oh. Well… James. And his parents. And mine of course. Although they're some of the ones who had to force themselves past, at least they have been since I was about ten. And Bellatrix has always been one of those, but then she didn't waste much time trying any other way. When I was five years old, she drowned my guinea pig because I laughed at her for falling in the pond. Though _she_ hasn't been able to get to me for a while. Other than that… well, Regulus and Narcissa were two of the ones who liked to watch while other people did the breaking. And Andromeda was the only other person I let in… And I might not have done that, if she hadn't been the only person in the damn family I could talk to."

"Not Remus, or… or Peter?"

"No," his voice had become hard at the mention of Peter's name, "I mean, they're my mates. Well, Remus is. Peter was. After James, they probably know me better than anyone. But I don't think they've ever seen me cry. I don't think anyone from school has, except James, and that was the summer I ran away from home. I don't let many people see me this way. Sorry you had to see it."

She looked at him for a few moments, and his eyes slid away from hers, as if he were ashamed of his display of emotion. Suddenly not remotely embarrassed any more, Lily reached out a hand, took hold of his chin and forced him to look at her. She met his eyes, the blue of them vanished into the shadowy darkness of the room.

"Sirius. Maybe we should both just stop apologising."

He finally met her eyes and looked at her for a few moments. She could not tell what expression was in his own eyes, but she held them, her heartbeat seeming loud in the silence. Then she saw his mouth curve into a brief smile.

"Yeah. Maybe we should," there was another pause, then, "Thank you," he murmured, only just audibly.

"For what?"

He thought about this.

"Listening. Understanding. Not saying stupid things that are supposed to be comforting."

It was her turn to smile.

"Okay. Thank _you_ for telling me. For letting me in. And for not judging me, before."

The last one was said very softly, but he had heard it. She could tell by the way he had gone very still.

"I would never judge you, Lily," he said, equally softly, "Especially not for things I'm not exactly… innocent of myself. I may be many things, but I'm not a hypocrite," he stretched suddenly, and went on in more normal tones, "Anyway, I don't see any of the things you've told me as bad. We weren't put on this earth to be angels… or virgins. And on that note," he looked at her suddenly, and she thought she saw slight amusement on his face, "What happened to staying on our own sides of the bed?"

She glared at him, the nearness of their bodies, and the lack of clothes, suddenly striking her.

"Fine. Next time I won't bother trying to be nice."

She began to draw back to her own side of the bed, and a strong hand caught her wrist and stopped her.

"That wasn't a complaint, Lily."

"Oh." She stilled, not quite sure how to respond. Well, that was a first, she thought with amusement. Lily Potter, not knowing how to respond to a man. Normally, she never even thought about it. She said and did the first things that came into her head, never mind if they weren't really the right or the sensible things. But somehow, for some reason, she wanted to get this right.

"Lily, do you have any idea what you're doing to me?" his voice was laughing, but there was a definite note of something else underneath the laughter, and his words were still echoing in her head. "_I'm Sirius Black_," he had said, "_The one who laughs when he wants to cry_." It was his defence mechanism. What he did to stop himself giving himself away.

"You're lying there, so close I can touch you – fuck, I _am _touching you – wearing nothing but a t-shirt and your underwear. Are you even wearing anything under that t-shirt? And you've been driving me mad all afternoon…" once again, she had an uncomfortable feeling that he probably wouldn't be saying all this if he hadn't been drinking, "Because you're _damned_ attractive, Lily," he went on, "And more than that, I like you. You're fun, and you're nice, and intelligent, and you don't throw yourself at a man, but you don't go all tongue-tied and embarrassed at a bit of flirting either. And you can deal with me going all weird and emotional, without freaking out. And you know how to have a laugh, but you tell me off when I go too far, without getting too heavy about it. And, hell Lily, I _like_ that… but you're James' _granddaughter, _so I can't…Shit, I'm rambling. I didn't mean to say all that, I'm sorry…"

"Sirius," she broke in, "I thought we agreed. No more apologising." She freed her elbow gently from his grasp and took hold of his hand, stroking her thumb gently over his palm without really thinking what she was doing.

"Would you like to know some of what's been going on in my head?" she asked softly, "Because, you know, you're not so bad yourself, in the attractiveness department. I've been observing you from behind, all afternoon. I couldn't get the best view, being that close to you, but it was quite nice all the same. And I like someone who makes me laugh, and who doesn't take life too seriously. Somebody who doesn't mind breaking rules, and doesn't live their life according to what other people expect. And somebody who doesn't think the number of people I've slept with is that much of a big deal. Somebody who can be flirting with me one minute, and having a deep conversation the next. Somebody who can let me through the defences and let me see the real person inside, even if that real person is vulnerable…" her voice had fallen and trailed off, "And I'm rambling too, and I don't have most of a bottle of Firewhisky as an excuse."

"Oh, fuck it," he almost groaned, and he grabbed her wrist, pulled her close and pressed his lips to hers.

She could taste the alcohol on his breath; not terribly strong, and not at all unpleasant, especially when mingled with his own smell; a mixture of leather and bike oil and expensive cologne and the fresh autumn air and something underneath it all that was pure Sirius… And, Merlin, the boy could kiss. He broke away suddenly.

"James is going to kill me," he said breathlessly.

She had ended up lying across his chest, and she propped herself up and looked down into his face, cheeks flushed and breathing uneven. This was a bad idea. It was stupid, and irresponsible, and… and right now, she didn't care.

"Sirius," she murmured, "when you're kissing a girl, _don't_ think about your best mate. Forget about James. Just for a little while. Okay?"

He smiled up at her.

"I've forgotten him already," he breathed.

"Good. Oh, and Sirius? Just for your information; no, I'm not wearing anything under the t-shirt."

And she leaned down and kissed him again.

**I asked a question at the end of Chapter 4, and arwenjanelilylyra was the only one who answered it. So I've taken her advice and made things happen between Lily and Sirius. **

**I know there's quite a lot of bad language and LOTS of sexual references in the last two chapters, but there's nothing particularly graphic, so I don't really feel the need to change it to an M rated story. Let me know if you disagree.**


	7. The Morning After

**Disclaimer: I do not own JKR's characters or world**

**A/N: Woohoo! Reviews! *****Scatters biscuits liberally to all the people who reviewed***** Thank you so much everyone, and sorry for the wait you've had for this chapter – I have a lot of university work on at the moment, and I'm afraid as a result this seems a bit like a filler chapter.**

**Just to say – anyone who leaves a signed review, I will try and send a personal reply. Anyone else, I'll try and answer your issues and questions here, which is going to make this author's note a bit long. Skip it if you just want the story, but there are some things I want to say.**

**We now seem to have some mixed opinions on the Lily/Sirius pairing in the last two chapters. Some of you like it, some of you don't, which doesn't surprise me – I'm glad though, that even the people who don't like the pairing still like the story and want to read more – that's actually a real compliment to my writing when I think about it, so thanks guys! I don't mind if it's the pairing you don't like – obviously everybody has pairings that just don't do it for them – and I'm not trying to make you like it; I just want to explain a bit of why I'm writing this.**

**To be honest, if I'd come across this story, I'm not sure I would have liked this pairing – I even found writing it a bit weird at first, but it's growing on me. Somebody described it as 'unethical,' because Sirius is dead in Lily's time, but pretty much every time travel story I've ever read (and I don't just mean Harry Potter fanfic time travel) involves a romance of some sort between people of different times (one of whom is usually dead in the other's time), so I don't really see that as unethical – just a bit stupid in this case, which is something they're perfectly aware of. After all, the way things are at the moment, they are close in age, they aren't related at all by blood, and they've never met before – essentially, to each other, they are like OCs. **

**I started writing this story because the plot popped into my head and insisted on being written. I know it's quite a weird plot, but this story was always supposed to be a bit weird and different – I was just having a bit of fun with it, to be honest, but now the characters have definitely taken over. There is a reason why I think I needed to write this story, but saying it now would mean giving away the ending. And talking of the ending, there is now only one place this story is heading, and I'm a bit worried now that I have quite a large readership that people aren't going to like it. Sorry if you don't, but as I say, it's taken on a life of its own now, so there's nothing I can do!**

**But for those of you who don't like the pairing, there's not much evidence of it in this chapter – they're back to 'just friends.' And they're **_**perfectly**_** aware of the weirdness of the whole situation, don't worry. **

_It was still very early and at a first glance, there was nobody around in the slightly dingy street. A faint breeze blew, sending a sheet of old newspaper drifting lazily up the gutter. In the distance, even at this hour, there was a hum of traffic, but here nothing was stirring._

_From somewhere nearby, there was a loud pop, and a couple of startled pigeons took off in a clatter of wings. After a few moments, a young man walked around the corner. He had brown hair, which had not seen a hairdresser for a while by the look of it. He was not particularly tall, but walked with a certain muscular grace. His brown eyes, however, were worried._

_He looked around him, as though hoping to see something or somebody. He was disappointed. His gaze flicked up to a dirty white sign on the street corner. Yes, he was on the right road. But she wasn't here. _

_James didn't know what he had hoped to find. If she had still been here, that couldn't have been good news. Tim Fawcett had last seen her more than six hours ago. He bit his lip. If anything had happened to Lily, Fawcett would wish that he had never been born. Admittedly, he was probably wishing something similar anyway; he would currently be waking up from the stunning spell, to find himself completely immobilised on James' floor, with an itching rash all over his body. _

_He wandered up the street, trying to decide what to do. Of course, Lily would be fine. She was probably at Molly's or something right now, waking up to find their disapproving cousin standing over her with a cup of coffee laced with Hangover Potion. Because nothing could really have happened to her, could it? She was a _witch_ for goodness' sake! But she did get very drunk sometimes, and then she didn't always think straight…No, scratch that. Lily didn't even have to be drunk not to think straight. Tim Fawcett was evidence enough of that. And all the others. A dark scowl came over James' face at this thought, as it always did. If he hadn't actually been seriously worried about his sister, he would have been quite pleased, really, at the excuse to hex one of the pathetic idiots who trailed after her, and the fact that some of them were his friends made no difference to that fact. The boys he had been at school with had learnt a long time ago that, whatever you might have done with Lily Potter, you did not mention it in front of James if you wanted to leave standing upright._

_A glint of something silver caught his eye, and he stooped into the gutter and picked it up, his stomach suddenly sinking. It was a silver necklace; just a simple chain, with a yellow topaz swung on it. The topaz was Lily's birthstone, and the necklace had been a seventeenth birthday present from her godmother, Luna Scamander (an unusually appropriate present from the Scamanders; the other parts of it had been a large blood-covered tooth, which apparently came from a South American Gorpunkle, and was supposed to be lucky, and an enormous red sombrero, which looked horrible with Lily's hair. Their parents had been relieved; on her thirteenth birthday, Luna and Rolf had given their goddaughter a live Blast-ended Screwt.)_

_Well, at least he now knew for certain that Lily had been here. But where was she now? And how had she lost her necklace? Surely it could not just have fallen off?_

_There was a sudden movement somewhere to his left. He glanced up, and realised with a shock that the pile of old rags and newspapers huddled against the wall was in fact an old man, with a gap-toothed grin, watery bloodshot eyes and a straggled beard. _

"_You lookin' fer the angel, are you, boyo?" the old man asked, his voice cracked and slurred._

"_What?" James snapped, before realising that he was talking to a crazy old drunkard, and turning away._

"_The angel, boyo," the man cackled with laughter suddenly, "That's what I reckon she were, though they'd all say 'Robbie, you're mad. Angels don' look like that.' An' maybe not, but I don' see for why. That were my kind of angel. All them clouds of red 'air. She dropped that bitty silver you got there though. I reckoned maybe she'd be back fer it. You better put it back where you found it, boyo. You don't want ter steal from the angels…"_

_Slowly, James turned back to the old man._

"_This angel," he said, "She had red hair?"_

_The old man chuckled._

"_She did that. An' then she disappeared in a flash of light. That's 'ow I knew she were an angel. I don' mean the sort of flash-bang light you get from a firework, mind. It were… more of a glow…" the old man's voice became dream-like, "Yeah, tha's right. A great glow, what lit up the 'ole street. All warm, like. And a wind, like as if a storm were blowin', only it weren't no storm, 'cause there weren't no rain. And then she were gone," he looked sharply at James sometimes, "I ain't seein' things, boyo. Tha's what they say. They say ol' Robbie sees things what ain't there. But I know what I seen…"_

"_I believe you," James spoke thoughtfully, "But… did you see anything else?"_

_The old man shook his head obstinately._

"_No, I tell you, she were gone. But you put that bitty silver back, boyo. She'll come back for it, an' she'll think ol' Robbie took it, she will!"_

_James forced a smile on his face._

"_No… It's okay. I know her. I'll take her the necklace. I'll tell her it wasn't you, don't worry…"_

_The old man smiled toothlessly._

"_You're a good lad, boyo. Owe you a favour, I do. I won' forget. Ol' Robbie doesn' forget."_

"_Right. Don't worry about it."_

_James dug in his pocket, found a few Muggle coins in the bottom, and tossed them onto old Robbie's blanket._

"_Thanks," he said briefly, and walked off, back the way he had come._

_Could the old man be trusted? He had clearly seen Lily, unless his description of the 'clouds of red hair' was a coincidence. But he was drunk, and seemed half crazy. Was his account trustworthy? Well, no, of course not. A Muggle would have instantly dismissed it as ridiculous rambling. But James knew that such things were, theoretically at least, possible. Although he couldn't for the life of him think of an explanation that made sense, even to a wizard. _

_It was beyond him. James didn't like to admit it, but it was. He couldn't begin to solve this one. He would have to tell his parents. If – and it was the only thing James could think of – there was dark magic involved, Dad would know what to do. At least, he would have a better idea than James. Being a professional Quidditch player was good, but it didn't give you the same skills as an Auror. But… could he do that to his parents? After all… he didn't know for sure that anything bad had happened to Lily. It could have been a piece of magic she had performed herself. Okay, so he couldn't think of anything that produced the effects the old man had described. But then, the man was drunk, and a little mad. He could have been wrong. He could even have imagined the whole thing. But if James went to his parents, they would be out of their minds with worry. Lily might be nineteen, but to them she was still their little girl; the baby of the family, and they worried about her far more than they did about him and Al. _

_The answer was suddenly obvious. There were other people who knew about dark magic; who had experience of all kinds of mysterious problems. And some of them lived in London too. Before he panicked his parents, he would go and see Uncle Ron and Aunt Hermione, and see what light they could throw on this._

Lily opened her eyes to bright sunshine spilling in through the thin curtains. For a few moments, she was disorientated, trying to work out where she was. There was somebody else on the other side of the bed; that was nothing unusual. She propped herself up on her elbow, looked at the man beside her, and realisation came flooding in. She groaned and flopped back onto the bed, face first. Sirius opened his eyes and rolled over.

"Good morning," he said lazily.

"What did we do?" she moaned into the pillows.

He grinned. "D'you want a blow by blow account?"

"No!" she groaned, and turned her head to look at him, "Sirius, how could we be so _stupid_?"

"Well," he frowned slightly, "_I _was drunk. What's your excuse?"

"I can't help being nice to people when I feel sorry for them?" she suggested sourly.

He winced slightly. "Ow. That was below the belt."

"You're not wearing a belt," she muttered, "And that's no worse than telling someone you only had sex with them because you were drunk."

"Lily," he looked at her suddenly, "You know that's not why I…"

"And _you_ know that's not why _I_ did either," she wasn't making much sense, but she was pretty sure he'd understand what she meant, "But maybe we should just pretend that's all it was. You were drunk and emotional. I was sorry for you and… stupid. Because we have to move past this. It shouldn't have happened. It was stupid and irresponsible and… and whatever we do about this whole situation, it can't include this. You… you're my father's godfather. When I was born, you were _dead_. What happened last night was… wrong. And it makes everything far more complicated, unless we just forget it happened. I mean… it didn't mean anything," she went on, in a small voice, "I mean, you and me both, we know sex doesn't necessarily mean anything, right? There's no harm in a bit of fun, but…"

"Right," he smiled at her, "You're right. It was stupid. But it doesn't change anything. I don't want to… forget it happened. But we don't need to take it too seriously, do we? To pretend that one night meant more than it did? Like you say, there's no harm in a bit of fun…" he grinned teasingly at her, "And it _was_ fun, wasn't it?"

She smiled back, immensely relieved that he was being sensible about it.

" I suppose so," she said, thoughtfully.

"You suppose so?" he looked outraged, "What's that supposed to mean?"

"That all men get wound up the same way," she quipped back, "Now close your eyes. I'm going to the bathroom."

"Close my eyes?" he glowered at her, "I saw plenty last night…"

"I don't care. Night time and daytime are two different things. And now it's daytime, we're back to how we were yesterday. Which means you close your eyes when I'm naked."

* * * *

The wind had blown away the bad weather overnight, and it was a sparkling, crisp November day as they set out from the Wheatsheaf Hotel. Taking off was no problem here; five minutes out of the town, along the same winding road they had arrived on, and there was nobody to watch them except some startled sheep and a handful of ducks that had waddled out of a farmyard gate and across the road.

Breakfast had been had in the hotel dining room, and Lily had rather enjoyed it, although Sirius had complained about the Muggle food. All in all, Lily was inclined to be more optimistic, in the bright light of morning, that Dumbledore would think of something. Although, she thought, with a slight squirm of her stomach, what had happened last night wouldn't be something they told him. In fact, they seemed to be more or less ignoring it themselves, and had gone back to the easy, semi-flirtatious manner they had used the previous day.

It was still a long way, but Lily found herself almost enjoying the flight today. The sun was shining, she liked flying (and she quite liked motorbikes, she decided) and the view was amazing. She had never been on a long distance broomstick flight, and she had only ever seen this part of the country from the windows of the Hogwarts Express. This was an entirely different perspective. As they flew further north, the land became more mountainous; the hillsides were brown and russet in their autumn colours, while the peaks threw sharp, jagged shadows across the valleys. The odd river wound its way through the hills, gleaming blue in the sunlight, and white foaming streams rushed down the mountains, swollen and violent from the night's rain. Occasionally, the valleys opened out into great lochs, as blue as the rivers, surrounded by trees that had mostly lost their leaves now, but still retained the odd flash of gleaming gold. On the low-lying ground, groups of deer moved, barely visible against the brown heather.

Sirius was relaxed, only the odd lapse betraying the continuing tension he was feeling; tension which had nothing to do with her. Or rather, it had everything to do with her, and what she had told him, but nothing to do with what had happened between them.

"How do you know where to go?" she demanded, at some point around midday, when the sun was as high in the sky as it would get at this time of year.

He glanced over his shoulder.

"Oh…" he said vaguely, "James and I flew once before. We decided it would be more fun than the Hogwarts Express."

"I didn't know you had the bike when you were still at school."

"I didn't," he told her, "We went by broom. It was James' idea, of course. Nobody else could think that 600 odd miles on a broom would be fun. We got into a lot of trouble for that. Turned out it's against the rules not to go on the train."

Lily laughed.

"Well, I would be impressed… but my dad once flew to school in a Ford Anglia car."

"What?" Sirius exclaimed, "Harry did? _Brilliant!_ Although I ought to be annoyed that he beat us. We never thought of that…"

"In his second year, too."

"In his second year…" Sirius repeated, sounding shocked but delighted, "Excellent. Glad to see he grows up with the right ideas, even though James and I aren't there to teach him. Just out of interest, who _does_ look after him?"

"Er… Aunt Petunia and her husband," Lily said quietly.

"_What_? You mean Lily's sister? The one she doesn't even talk to? The one you said didn't want anything to do with you all? A _Muggle_?"

"Um, yeah, that's her," Lily tried to sound light hearted.

"No. Fuck no," Sirius muttered, his good mood disappearing, "No way. Dumbledore has to help us sort things out a bit better than that."

"It was sort of important, actually," Lily told him, "Something to do with the protection Lily puts on him. It only holds while he's living with her relatives, or something."

"But it won't be relevant if Lily isn't dead," Sirius said determinedly.

The other Lily was silent, not bothering to comment on that remark.

Shortly after that, they swung round a mountain peak, and found themselves looking at a great stone castle above a darkly wooded slope and a broad lake. It was a very familiar sight to both of them, and Lily caught her breath. Everything had been so strange and alien to her in this time, it was somehow a shock to find something that looked exactly as she remembered it.

Their landing was considerably smoother than it had been last time. Sirius pulled up on the main drive, to the astonishment of several groups of students, who stared and pointed excitedly. Sirius waved cheerfully at a group of Gryffindors who looked to be in the sixth or seventh year, and they waved back uncertainly, looking considerably startled at his sudden appearance. He did not stop to talk to them though, but pulled up in a skid of gravel at the bottom of the front steps.

They climbed off, Lily eying him with amusement.

"Going for the dramatic entrance, are we?"

He grinned at her.

"Well… may as well give them something to talk about. They'll probably wonder who latest girl is…"

"Yes, well," she looked around, "I wish you hadn't. It would probably be clever to avoid being seen by anybody who might know me in the future."

"I wouldn't worry," he said casually, "They're all too busy wondering what I'm doing here to take much notice of you. I doubt that any of them will remember you in fifty years," He kicked the brake on, and cast a spell over the bike, "Right, well that should keep grubby little hands off."

She grinned.

"But will it keep Slytherin Seventh Year wands off?" she nodded at another group, just coming down the steps, who were looking at Sirius with expressions varying from disdain to downright malice.

"Should do," he said offhandedly, and turned to the group, apparently entirely at ease with them.

"All right, Daykin?"

"What the hell are you doing here, Black?" a brown haired, heavy set boy scowled at Sirius.

Sirius thought for a moment.

"Er… nope, can't think of any reason why I should tell _you_ that Daykin, sorry. Now we must be getting on. See you around. Or maybe not… Heard your uncle was in Azkaban, by the way. Hope you're not missing him too much."

The boy's brow lowered.

"Well, if we're talking about _family_, Black, why don't we talk about what happened to your precious little brother…?"

Sirius raised his eyebrows.

"I'm not sure why you expect me to know anything about my brother. Regulus has picked his own path; you all have. Don't expect me to join you."

Daykin smirked unpleasantly.

"Right, of course, we all know about Sirius Black, too _noble _for his own family. Don't expect you'll care too much that Regulus has disappeared then…"

Sirius, who had turned away, turned back sharply.

"Disappeared?" for a moment, there was emotion in his voice, but he had it under control in seconds, "What would you know, Daykin? I didn't realise Regulus kept kids like you aware of his movements."

Daykin's smirk grew wider.

"Oh, but you see, I _do_ know. Nobody's seen him for months… though I'm not surprised nobody bothered to tell you. Most people thought he was off on the Dark Lord's business, but when it gets to be a year since anyone's seen him, people start to think something different. Your mother's very upset about it; comes round and pours her heart out to mine about once a week. She still seems to think dear Regulus has disappeared in action, fighting for the Cause. She's been badgering the Ministry to tell her what they've done with him. Of course, some of us have different ideas. None of the Death Eaters seem that worried about him, and there are some of us who can't help wondering whether old Reggie didn't just turn chicken. The Dark Lord has no time for cowards, you know, and Regulus was always weak… Just like his brother…"

Lily felt Sirius tense up, and she gripped his arm suddenly.

"Sirius, _don't_," she murmured in his ear. For a moment, she thought he was going to anyway, but then she felt him relax slightly, and he satisfied himself with a dark glower at the younger boy.

"Well, I'm sure you know all about what your Dark Lord likes in his followers, Daykin," he said, his voice light, "I expect you know exactly how his mind works, and what he likes for breakfast and everything. Only seventeen and already in the Dark Lord's inner circle; your parents must be proud… but now, if you'll excuse us, we have urgent business with Professor Dumbledore."

And with a tight smile that didn't reach his eyes, Sirius turned and took the steps two at a time. Lily followed him, glancing back when they reached the top, to see Daykin and his friends still standing at the bottom, Daykin staring after them with an unpleasant sneer. Sirius, however, did not look back, and they entered the doors of Hogwarts, a familiar place to them both. Once they were inside, he glanced sideways at her.

"I could have taken him," he muttered.

"I daresay you could," Lily retorted, "I'd be worried if you couldn't, given that he's still at school and barely of age. I should think that between the two of us, we could probably have taken on the bunch of them. But we came here to talk to Dumbledore, not get arrested for breaking into the school and attacking the students. And he's not worth it. He was _trying_ to make you attack him; he was winding you up deliberately."

"I know, I know," Sirius agreed impatiently, "And I didn't, did I? Stupid little bastard."

He stopped suddenly and turned to her.

"I know what he was trying to do. But what he was saying… is it true? About Regulus?"

Lily had been hoping that that question wouldn't be asked. She stared vaguely at a point over his shoulder.

"I… I don't really know what happened to Regulus. Not in detail."

It wasn't true. She knew exactly what had happened to Regulus Black, but she couldn't have said when it had happened. Perhaps it wasn't now; perhaps Daykin really had been making things up…

"Come on," said Sirius flatly, "You've got some idea, I can tell. You must know whether he really did disappear," a pleading note crept into his voice, "I only want to know if he's alive or not."

"You gave the impression you didn't give a damn about Regulus," Lily muttered, "You said James was your real brother,"

"Yeah, well…" Sirius looked at the ground, "He is. But the thing is, so was Regulus, once. And I never said I didn't care about him. Regulus was never cut out to be a Death Eater. He's not evil, or cruel. He's just stupid and weak and scared."

Lily looked at him.

"Well, like you said, we've all been scared. And I can tell you, he isn't stupid. Or weak. But yes, Sirius, he's disappeared. He's dead; at least I think he probably is. But he was killed by Voldemort, and not because he got cold feet. It was because he betrayed Voldemort in the worst possible way; he regretted ever joined the Death Eaters. He stole one of the Horcruxes, Sirius, and he died doing it…"

Sirius's expression of shock was cut short by a voice behind them.

"Mr Black! To what do we owe the dubious honour?"

They both turned, and Lily's mouth fell open as her eyes fell on a younger Professor McGonagall; the Minerva McGonagall she had known had been an extremely elderly woman, with only a few remaining signs of the stern teacher she had once been. Sirius, however, was evidently fairly familiar with this Professor McGonagall, and, pulling himself together, grinned cheerfully at her.

"Hello, Professor! Nice to see you too! How have you been?" he looked round appreciatively, "Good to see the old place again. How's life at Hogwarts?"

Professor McGonagall looked extremely suspicious, and Lily noticed that she had her wand in her hand.

"Mr Black… what were the last words I spoke to you, last time we met?"

Sirius thought for a moment, then grinned.

"Oh yes, I remember. You said 'Sirius Black, if I hear you've had that godson of yours on that horrible machine, I shall be very displeased indeed.' At least, I think that was the last thing. There might have been something small, like a goodbye or something, but…"

"Very well," McGonagall lowered her wand, although she still looked suspicious, "I apologise, Sirius; but you must understand that we cannot allow people simply to walk into the school in times like these. Now, perhaps you'd care to tell me what on earth you're doing here. And who is your friend?"

There was an almost imperceptible pause before the word friend, and Lily winced slightly, realising that the events of last night had made her into a cliché; just yet another girl Sirius Black had picked up somewhere. Everyone would assume the same thing that McGonagall did, and they'd be right as well.

"Oh yes, sorry about that," they had planned for this sort of possibility and Sirius sounded utterly unfazed, "This is Amy Gorman. Amy, this is Professor Minerva McGonagall, my ex-Deputy Headmistress, ex-Head of House, ex-Transfiguration teacher, and the only person I'd never dare to disobey. Oh, and I suppose that these days I might even call her a friend, if that's not taking too much of a liberty." He grinned at McGonagall, who sniffed.

"Nonsense," she said, although her voice had softened, "I can remember countless occasions when you took not the slightest bit of notice of my instructions, Mr Black. Well, it's a pleasure to meet you Miss Gorman…"

"And you," Lily smiled politely. She had tried stepping back behind Sirius and keeping her head lowered, not wanting the older woman to see her face; not that she expected to be recognised, but in ten years time, Professor McGonagall would be teaching her mother, and Lily had often been told how much she resembled the young Ginny Weasley. However, she now had no choice but to step forwards and raise her face. Well, she thought resignedly, that was probably the least of their worries. The chances of McGonagall remembering a girl she had met by chance one afternoon, well enough to notice her uncanny resemblance to a student, ten years later, were slim.

"But now," McGonagall turned back to Sirius, "You still haven't told me what you're doing here.."

"Aren't I allowed to feel nostalgic…? And to show my friends my old school?"

She glared at him.

"Nonsense" she said again, "And no, you are not allowed, as a matter of fact. This is a school, Mr Black, not a tourist attraction. Unless you have some legitimate business here…"

"We came to see Professor Dumbledore," Lily interrupted firmly, seeing the conversation getting out of hand.

Professor McGonagall turned and looked very sharply at her, her eyes narrowing.

"I… see. Thank you, Miss Gorman. And… may I ask why…?"

"I'm sorry, Professor," Sirius said quietly, suddenly sounding much more grown-up, "But we can't tell too many people. Top secret Order business… I'm sorry."

"No, no," she said briskly, "I understand. But…" she looked again, warily, at Lily.

"Amy knows all about the Order," he murmured, "She's with us. She has important information we need to tell Dumbledore."

"Very well, Mr Black. You know the way, I think," she lowered her voice, "The password is Kola Kubes," she sniffed, a little disapprovingly, "A Muggle sweet, I believe."

Sirius grinned.

"Thanks Professor. See you at the party…"

She stared at him.

"What _party_, Mr Black?"

His grin widened.

"The one I'm planning. Order of the Phoenix Christmas Party. James and I are organising it. Going to do the thing in style…"

"I imagine that any party organised by yourself and Mr Potter will be an extremely messy affair," she said sternly, "I seem to recall the odd instance of students ending up in the hospital wing the night after a Gryffindor Quidditch victory, and I can only assume that your habits have got worse since you left school…"

"You can't blame James and me if people who can't take their alcohol decide to drink Firewhisky!" Sirius protested.

"I can blame you for the fact that there was Firewhisky in the Common Room at all," she retorted dryly, "No, please don't bother to deny it, Mr Black. I am not in the mood to argue with you over something so irrelevant."

"But you'll come to the Christmas Party, won't you Professor?" Sirius said coaxingly, "We can't manage without you, you know."

"We shall see," was her only reply, "Goodbye, Sirius. Nice to meet you, Miss Gorman."

And she swept past them out of the front door.

Lily and Sirius went the other way.

"I reckon she'll come," Sirius said with a grin, "What d'you think our chances would be of getting her drunk…?"

"Sirius, we shouldn't let that happen again," Lily said, worriedly, her mind on a completely different tangent.

"What?" he stared at her, "Oh… right. You know McGonagall in your time?"

"Well… not really," Lily admitted, "I did when I was little, but she died when I was seven."

"You met for all of two minutes just now! I doubt if she's going to remember you well enough to recognise you as a little girl in thirty years time."

"No, probably not," Lily agreed dubiously, "But we shouldn't risk it happening with anyone else. What if someone _did_ remember?"

"They'd think 'hmm, what a coincidence, Lily Potter reminds me of this girl I met once. Oh well, probably just my imagination.' Stop worrying. Even if somebody did remember, they'd neverguess at the truth, would they?"

**Once again, sorry for the filler chapter – I'll try and get the next one up soon, which gets more interesting again.**


	8. Dangerous Knowledge

**Disclaimer: I do not own JKR's characters or world**

**A/N: This chapter has been rewritten and republished 02/02/2013, due to several canon errors in the original. The basic content hasn't changed.**

* * *

_Ron Weasley had left early for work that morning; something about finishing some work before a meeting. His wife had half woken as he got out of bed, had mumbled a goodbye, and turned over to go back to sleep. She herself had the day off; they had just come to the end of an extremely complicated case that had had them all working overtime. The outcome had been favourable, and she had announced to the people under her that they could take a long weekend as a reward. She would probably go in herself later, because there were some things she wanted to work on, but there was no rush. She wondered vaguely whether Ginny was working from home today, as she sometimes did. If so, she might take a trip over to Barnstaple. They could have lunch together, and Lily might join them. She could pick up her Time Turner too, which she had accidentally left there…_

_She was startled out of her sleepy thoughts by a loud and persistent banging noise. She lifted her head in confusion, pushing her hair impatiently out of her eyes (it was still just as bushy as it had been when she was at school, although it now had the odd streak of grey among the brown). What time was it? How long was it since Ron had left the room? She wasn't sure whether she had been asleep again, or whether it had been just a few moments ago that she had heard the bedroom door close quietly. Was it him banging downstairs? If so, what on earth was he doing? Then the banging (which she thought might have been going on for some time) stopped, there was the unmistakeable sound of somebody Apparating downstairs, and Hermione Granger-Weasley was suddenly fully awake. With an exclamation, she jumped up, snatched her dressing gown from its hook, pulled it on, grabbed her wand, and hurried out of the door and down the stairs._

_When she saw who was standing in the kitchen, she lowered her wand, her alarm turning to annoyance._

"_James Potter! What on_ earth_ do you think you're doing?"_

_The young man standing by her kitchen table looked at her apprehensively._

"_Hey, Aunt Hermione. Sorry about this…"_

"_Jamie," she interrupted sternly, "You do _not_ simply Apparate into somebody's house because they don't answer the door! And what are you doing here at this time of day?"_

"_I'm sorry," he looked, now she came to notice it, desperately worried, and her irritation faded._

"_What's happened, James?"_

"_It's Lily," he said wretchedly, "She's gone…"_

_Hermione raised one eyebrow, carefully staying calm._

"_Gone?" she asked, steadily, "Gone where? What do you mean?"_

_James shook his head._

"_I don't know where she's gone. She's disappeared," he sounded slightly panicky, "She went out with Fawcett – Tim Fawcett – last night, and they had an argument or something and the bloody bastard left her by herself! And now she's gone, and some crazy old tramp saw it happen, and was going on about golden lights and stuff…"_

"_James," Hermione took his arm and pushed him forcibly into a chair, "Sit down, calm down, and tell me everything from the beginning. Now."_

_It wasn't wise to argue with Hermione when she spoke like that, and James had had twenty two years to learn that fact, so he did as he was told. He conveniently forgot to mention the state that he had left Tim Fawcett in, but the sharp look Hermione threw him when he glossed over this part of the story suggested that she suspected something of the truth; she said nothing about it however, but listened quietly until he got to the conversation with old Robbie, when a very strange expression came over her face._

"_A golden glow?" she repeated slowly, looking at him, "And a strong wind? Are you _sure_ that's what he said, Jamie?"_

_James nodded. "Yes. But he could have been…" He broke off. His aunt was not listening to him any more. She had begun to pace up and down, muttering to herself._

"_Impossible," she was saying, "It can't be. There's only one…"_

One which she had left on the Potters' kitchen table.

_She turned back to James suddenly, still carried by her own thought process. "And that's all he said? After the glow, and the wind… she was gone? That's all he saw?"_

"_That's what he said," James nodded again, and then, as she did not speak immediately but seemed deep in thought, "Aunt Hermione? Do you know… what's happened?"_

_She looked at him, her eyes deeply troubled._

"_I think so, James," she said, her tones stricken, "At least… yes, I think so."_

_He looked alarmed at her tone of voice._

"_Is it… bad?" he asked anxiously, "Is she okay?"_

_Hermione shook her head. "I just don't know, Jamie," she frowned worriedly, "It's my fault. I should _never_ have left it lying around… It's dangerous, in the state it's in. But I never dreamt…"_

"_Aunt Hermione!" James sounded close to panic, "What are you talking about? Left _what _lying around?_ _What's happened to Lily?"_

_Hermione closed her eyes._

"_If I'm right, James… and I think I am... then she's travelled through time."_

* * *

Lily and Sirius came to the entrance to the tower in which Dumbledore's office was to be found.

"Kola Kubes," Sirius said confidently, and the door swung open. They climbed the stairs in silence, each deep in their own thoughts. Lily was more than a little daunted by the prospect of meeting a man who, in her own time, was almost a legend, and she was wondering what she would say to him, and slightly uneasily what he would say to her when he heard what she had done. The only thing she could do would be to tell him everything, just as she had told Sirius and James and Lily. Whatever he had to say to her, it would be an immense relief to put it in the hands of somebody so much cleverer than her. She glanced at Sirius as they climbed and saw, in the dim light, that his face was tense. She guessed that he too was worrying about what Dumbledore would say to their story. Would the Headmaster be able to help them? Would he be able to think of a way to save Sirius and James and Lily, and all the others, from their fates? They stood outside the door. Lily swallowed as Sirius raised a hand, hesitated, then knocked.

A voice, which Lily had never heard before but which she knew would have been very familiar to her parents, called cheerfully, "Come in!"

They went in. Dumbledore was sitting behind his desk reading something, and he looked up as they entered, taking his glasses off as he did so. When he saw Sirius he beamed.

"Mr Black! I have to admit I wasn't expecting to see you. I trust that nothing is amiss?" his smile faded as he glanced between Sirius and Lily, and a very slight frown appeared on his face. Sirius looked at Lily, and she realised that, after all, this was her story to tell.

"Professor Dumbledore?" she took a deep breath and paused. He smiled encouragingly at her.

"Yes, that's right, although I don't think we've ever had the pleasure…?"

"No," she agreed, "We haven't. But Professor, there are things we need to tell you. We need your help," she hesitated again, then plunged on; better to get the main part out of the way quickly before they got to the complicated part of who she was and what exactly she knew, "I've done something terrible. I… You see, I've come from the future…" she stumbled over her words, hearing how ridiculous they sounded to her own ears.

Dumbledore's face had sharpened slightly however, and he held up one long finger.

"Stop there. You have come from the _future_, you say? How far into the future are we talking about exactly?"

"Forty seven years," she said automatically. The number was burned into her brain.

Dumbledore looked penetratingly at her for a moment.

"I am usually a very good judge of when somebody is lying to me," he said, almost to himself.

"Sir," Sirius broke in, sounding a little indignant, "I promise you, she's telling the truth. She knows things… things nobody could know..."

Dumbledore's gaze switched to him.

"Things that you yourself can confirm to be true, Mr Black?"

"Yes, sir," said Sirius quietly, though he did not elaborate.

Dumbledore looked back at Lily.

"All the same… I think I must ask for proof," he said, sounding, to her surprise, apologetic, "These are dangerous times, as I'm sure you both understand. It would not be outside the realms of possibility for Sirius here to be under a curse…"

Lily looked at him for a long moment. She did indeed understand; it was only sensible of him to desire proof that such a ludicrous statement was true. Her father would say the same thing. But what proof could she give him? Especially in front of Sirius, who should not really be told any more than he had been already.

"I know why you wanted James and Lily to go into hiding," she said at last, because that much Sirius knew anyway, "The prophecy... at the job interview. It was overheard," another sudden idea occurred to her, and she stepped forward to the desk, drawing her wand. Carefully, she placed the tip of the wand on the desk, and slowly drew a shape. The wand left a glowing trail that remained for a few seconds, and then faded. Sirius stepped forward curiously and gazed at the shape, uncomprehending. Dumbledore too watched it, his face unreadable. A circle in a triangle, with a vertical line down the centre. The sign of the Deathly Hallows.

"I know what they are," she said quietly, "I know about Grindelwald..." she thanked her stars she had actually read the story of Albus Dumbledore's life (a slightly more accurate, although still limited, version than Rita Skeeter's biography); she wasn't sure of all the details, but she knew the basics, "I know you know where the wand is, and you haven't found the stone yet... and then - maybe - there's James Potter's cloak..."

She was taking a gamble with the last one. She knew that at some point in the next few months it would occur to Dumbledore that James' cloak might be the cloak of the legend; she did not know whether it had occurred to him already. But if it had, then it was a thought that existed only in his own head, because he had not yet taken the cloak from James, and he had never told anybody about his suspicions. Which made it the perfect thing to convince him that she was telling the truth.

For a few seconds, there was silence in the room, then Sirius broke it.

"What…?" he began, but Dumbledore once more held up a hand to silence him.

"Never mind what, Mr Black. Very well," he said to Lily, "I am convinced, I think. You certainly know things that very, very few people have any idea of. And I do not think that you are lying to me… although I have been wrong before."

"I could always take Veritaserum," she offered, and he smiled.

"I do not think that that will be necessary. I believe you. Now," his voice was suddenly brisk, "I do not wish to know who you are immediately, so please don't introduce yourself. But tell me, how did you get here?"

Lily silently pulled out the Time Turner and handed it carefully to him.

"Careful with it," she warned him, "It's unstable. It pulled me here without me meaning to do anything."

Picking it up very carefully between forefinger and thumb, Dumbledore looked closely at it.

"Ingenious," he said, almost to himself, "Ingenious. But very dangerous. Dear me, yes. Time travel is a precarious art, and we do not really understand it."

Lily took a deep breath.

"Professor…"

Dumbledore looked up.

"How much have you told him?" he asked, simply, nodding in Sirius' direction.

She looked unhappy.

"A lot. And I told Lily Evans and James Potter too. I told them…"

For the third time, Dumbledore held up his hand, looking grave.

"I do not wish to know what it is that you have told them," he said firmly, "Knowledge of the future is a dangerous thing indeed. It could tear a person apart."

"But Professor," Sirius burst in, "You have to let us tell you! I… It's… the things she told us… we have to change them! I can't know this and do nothing! We can't just pretend we don't know, and walk into it… There's no way I could do that!"

Dumbledore looked thoughtfully at him, and then back at Lily.

"Yes," he said slowly, "It would tear a person apart. Mr Black, would you mind stepping outside for a moment?"

Sirius opened his mouth to argue, thought better of it, turned on his heel and marched out of the door. Dumbledore waited until the door had closed behind him, and turned to Lily.

"Sit down," he said gently. She slumped into a seat and looked helplessly at him.

"What have I done?" she whispered.

"You have given three people knowledge that they should not have," he said evenly, "You have told them things that they want to change… things, presumably, that they think they _could_ change. Things that they cannot change, because in your time, they have already happened."

"But," Lily hesitated and then went on, "But surely… I've changed things already, just by being here. I mean, I wasn't here the first time round."

"Weren't you? How do you know?"

She stared at him.

"Because… because… people would know. _I'd_ know!"

_Because Sirius would have told her dad if he had met her once. Wouldn't he? And he wouldn't have gone after Peter Pettigrew. Would he?_

"How often do we really _know_ exactly what has happened?" said Dumbledore, thoughtfully, "Even if we were there, we only ever see one tiny part of everything that goes on in the world at any one moment. Much of what we think we know is guesswork and assumptions based on the little bits of information we possess. And if we were not there, we rely purely on other people's interpretations. And inevitably, from all the millions on millions of tiny events that have taken place in the past, we only ever know of a very few; the few that those who reported it deemed important. The rest is lost forever," he looked hard at her, "I can assure you, my dear, that there was no _first time round_. This _is _the first time round. If you are here now, you were always here. And yet the events of your time still happened. As they will happen in our future…"

"But they won't! They can't!" she exclaimed, "Sirius knows… he'll change them."

"But he always knew," Dumbledore said calmly, "And he did not change them."

She shook her head.

"No. He didn't know. He couldn't have. There's no way we'd persuade him just to go along with it. To sacrifice…" she broke off, "_Please _can I tell you, Professor?"

He shook his head firmly.

"No, my dear. I'm sorry, but I cannot know. To know the future is to wield a power nobody should wield. Whatever heartache our ignorance is going to cause, the consequences of knowing could be too great to imagine. Nobody should bear that burden. I said that it could tear a person apart. You see for yourself what it is already doing to Sirius Black. And to that end… I am afraid that we must undo the possible damage you have done…"

"Undo it?" she said, incredulously. How did he imagine they were going to do that?

"You agree that you should not have told them? That for events to remain unchanged – and they _must_ remain unchanged – those involved must retain their ignorance?"

"I… I suppose so," she whispered.

Her head was spinning with it all. Was it possible that, after all, she had not changed anything? That it had all happened this way all the time? It…made a sort of sense, in a mind-boggling way. She remembered her father's story of the time he and Aunt Hermione had used the Time Turner. They had saved Sirius then, but they hadn't really _changed _anything when they went back in time. Because everything had happened the same way, both times her father experienced it. They had been there the first time too, because her father had seen himself cast the Patronus from the far side of the lake. They had just… seen a different part of what had happened.

But… that meant that everything anybody did was already set down as fate, which Lily could not believe. Surely everything couldn't be inevitable in that way? She felt bogged down in concepts she could not understand, and looked helplessly at Dumbledore.

"You are right," he said, calmly, "I do not know what you have told them, but if Sirius Black believes that he can change the future for the better, he will try to do it; especially if, as I suspect from what you have both said, it involves protecting people he cares about. And he cannot do this because, presumably, you know that he _did not_ do it. I am afraid, my dear, that there is only one solution I can think of. You know, I presume, how to use a memory charm?"

She stared at him in horror.

"No," she said with a firmness she was far from feeling, "I can't do that. _You_ can't do that…"

He sighed.

"My dear, _I_ could do nothing. I do not know what it is that they must forget, and so I could hardly remove it from their memories. It would have to be you who cast it. I would help, of course. I sincerely doubt that somebody as young as yourself could cast a strong enough memory charm of the complexity that is necessary here, at least not without doing significant damage to those you performed it on. But in the end, it would have to be you, and I cannot force you down that route. All I can do is urge you to think very carefully about it…"

She stared at him. She couldn't do this. She couldn't make this choice. It was too cruel; she couldn't tell them everything and then wipe their memories; that wasn't fair. But what else could she do? She had always suspected that Dumbledore would not give them the answers they desired; she had never thought deeply enough into it to predict this, but now she felt that she ought to have done. It was the obvious thing. It returned things to the way they had been… no, the way everybody _thought_ they had been. But it came to the same thing. James and Lily would die. Voldemort would fall. Harry Potter would be given the crucial weapons needed to defeat him when he rose again. Voldemort would fall again, for good this time. The little fact that Lily Luna Potter had appeared briefly in 1980 would be forgotten. Lily's own present would be safe.

But then she thought of the people she had met in this time. James and Lily, and their baby son. She could not think of that happy baby as the same person as her father; he was just a baby, and she would be condemning him to be orphaned. Those two young, happy, vibrant people would have the life snuffed out of them. Sirius… her heart clenched when she thought of Sirius. Could she erase all memory of herself from Sirius' mind? Could she betray him like that, after everything that had passed between them last night?

But in the end, it was a choice between their present and her present. A choice between people she had met less than two days ago and the friends and family she had known all her life. And she thought of her parents and her brothers, of her uncles and aunts and cousins. People she cared about. People she loved. She could not risk their futures.

But in the end, she thought dully, there was no choice anyway. If Dumbledore was right, there was no changing the past. Hopelessly, she nodded at Dumbledore.

"Tell me what to do."

* * *

A few minutes later, when Dumbledore had explained what she must do, she watched through a mist of tears as he called Sirius back into the room. Their plan was set. She was to perform the creative part of the charm, while Dumbledore poured some extra strength into it (she could manage the complexity of it, but not provide the necessary force at the same time), and then she was to leave immediately. Dumbledore would complete the process by removing any memory of herself from Sirius' mind as well, while she went on to Godric's Hollow, where he would catch her up.

"I may be a little while," Dumbledore had said, "I'll have to give Sirius a different reason for coming to see me, which will mean we have to stay here and talk about it for a bit. Then I'll follow you, and we can deal with Lily and James," he had looked at her with an expression that was both sorrowful and understanding, "I know that this must be very hard for you. But believe me, it is the easiest way."

She couldn't believe that she was going to do this. After all they'd gone through, it was going to end like this. As Sirius re-entered the office, some words that he had spoken that morning drifted into her head.

"_I don't want to forget it happened_," he had said. He hadn't meant forgetting it this way, of course. But the almost prophetic nature of the words tugged at her heartstrings, and a sob caught in her throat, as he looked from Dumbledore to her, his eyes dwelling on their drawn wands.

"What…?" he began, his voice puzzled.

"I'm sorry," she said in a shaking voice, tears obscuring her vision, "Sirius, I'm so, so sorry." She raised her wand and pointed it at his face, his eyes widening in alarm as he reached automatically for his own wand. But she got there first.

"_Obliviate_."


	9. Back to the Future

**Disclaimer: I do not own JKR's characters or world**

**A/N: This is a short chapter I know, but there wasn't much to say. **

**Just a note about my formatting. I have been using italics for the bits in 2027, and that changes in this one. The reason is that the italics represent the time where Lily isn't, so when she returns to the future, it is no longer italicised. **

**Also, this story relies heavily on Dumbledore having knowledge and skills that we never learn about in the books, and on the fact that by 2027, the Wizarding World is likely to have advanced a bit, which means things are possible that weren't necessarily possible in the books – so yes, I have made some things up that probably weren't true in the canon. But they could have been true…**

**Final point: I made a mistake in the last chapter that I don't know if anyone picked up on. I made it sound like the Philosopher's (Sorcerer's) Stone was the stone of the Hallows, which obviously it is not. I didn't actually mean it to seem like that – originally, Lily said considerably more to Dumbledore, revealing what she knew about various things, including Ariana, and Tom Riddle's past, as well as Nicholas Flamel and the Hallows, but then I decided it would be more effective if it was just a few words. And somewhere among the chopping and changing I did, it ended up sounding completely wrong. Anyway, I can't be bothered to repost the chapter, so I'll just apologise for any confusion. Lily was simply listing things she knew Dumbledore would understand the significance of.**

**Thank you so much for following and for all the reviews. This update is quite fast, so I haven't given many people a chance to review the last chapter. If you like, you can leave two :-) **

**Ihudp and Lin lino: Glad you like it. Here's what happens next, which you might not like so much. And to ihudp, yes, the halfway mark was passed a while back (this story was never meant to be long) but… well, get to the end of this chapter and you'll see.**

Lily walked out of the house in Godric's Hollow feeling dazed, as though she were in a dream. The reality of what she had done – what she had _had_ to do – had not yet sunk in. They were going to die. Everything she had told them was gone from their minds; they were still expecting Sirius to be the Secret Keeper, and before very long, Sirius would be persuading them that Wormtail would be a better person to use. They did not know that Peter was a traitor. They would not know until it was too later. They had forgotten who Lily was; their puzzled faces had turned to her before she left the house; but that was changing even as she stopped outside the gate. Dumbledore would make sure that they did not remember the red-haired girl who had been with him.

Lily leaned against a tree, feeling the chill November wind nip her cheeks. She was still wearing Sirius' leather jacket. He would wonder what had happened to it, but he would not remember that he had given it to James' granddaughter. She held her sleeve to her face and breathed in the smell. Sirius' smell. Tears started in her eyes again as she thought of the twelve years he was to spend in Azkaban.

"_It's the one thing that really terrifies me_," he had said, "_being shut up_." At least Lily and James would die quickly, and they were spared any knowledge of what was to come. But Sirius would have to suffer for year upon year, and the fact that he did not know it yet, and therefore did not have to fear it, was small comfort.

And he had not wanted to forget. He had wanted to remember her, and what had happened between them, and she had betrayed him. Forced him to forget.

Footsteps sounded behind her and she looked up to see the grave, bespectacled face of Albus Dumbledore approaching her. A face which was quite well-known to her, but which she had never expected to see in the flesh. He saw the question in her face and nodded.

"It is done," he said, and shook his head sadly, "I do not know what you may have told them, but I fear for the future."

She said nothing. There was nothing that could be said. He did not seem to expect a reply, but looked at her over his spectacles.

"Now. We must get you home," he pulled out the Time Turner that he had never given back to her and looked thoughtfully at it, "Yes. A very dangerous item indeed. In the wrong hands… I think perhaps that I shall keep this. For one thing, I should like to examine it in more detail. For another, I think that with me is the safest place for it."

"But… but how will I get home without it?"

"Oh," he gazed at it, "I do not think that you need a Time Turner to get back to your own time. Usually, of course, one is only travelling back an hour or two, and can simply wait until you catch up with your time again. Obviously, you cannot wait forty seven years. But I am fairly sure… that there should be another way. Your own time has a powerful pull on you, you see. It's where you belong, and will automatically pull you back if it can. Like a magnet, to use a Muggle comparison. You can pull two magnets apart, but if you put them close enough to each other, they will draw together again."

"But… how do I do that?" Lily asked, bemused.

"Well… you could try simply apparating to the point at which you first appeared in this time. I think that you are more likely to get through there, because the boundaries are already worn thin there."

"And will that work?" she said incredulously, "I just go back there, and I'll be sucked straight back to 2027?"

"I don't know," said Dumbledore calmly, "This situation is entirely outside my experience. But it's perfectly possible. And there's only one way to find out. Of course, if you find yourself there and still in 1980, with no sign of any travelling through time, then you must come back to me and we'll think of something different."

"Right," she straightened up, feeling a little awkward, "I suppose… I should say goodbye then."

He smiled kindly at her. "Yes indeed. Goodbye my dear. I am sorry that I never got to hear your name, but you understand I'm sure," he looked carefully at her, "And… do not give up hope altogether. As I think I said to you earlier, there are few occasions when we really _know_ what has happened in the past. You may have had more of an effect than you think, and the things you know of may not have been quite as bad as they seem."

She looked at him.

Afterwards, she couldn't have said why she said it. It just came into her head, and the next thing she knew, it was coming out of her mouth, the way things often did.

"Professor Dumbledore…"

"Yes, my dear?"

"Sirius would never betray James and Lily, you know."

Dumbledore looked surprised.

"I don't doubt it. I have never for a moment imagined that he would."

"No… but, if there was ever a time when you _did_ doubt it, for whatever reason… He wouldn't. Not ever. I _know_ he wouldn't."

And then, sure that she had said far too much again, she took a breath, spun on the spot and apparated. The last thing she saw was the face of Albus Dumbledore, looking half startled and half thoughtful, before Godric's Hollow disappeared and a London street appeared beneath her feet. She straightened up, and had just time to note with surprise that her aim had not been as bad as usual, when a familiar force caught her up. The air glowed golden, and a strong wind almost caught her off her feet, and when the air cleared, she knew with sudden clear certainty that she was back in 2027. It felt… right. Familiar, like a sound or a smell you've never really noticed before but which you know as well as you know anything.

It was not, however, the same time at which she had first disappeared. It still felt like summer (and the first thing she did was strip the jacket off) but it was broad daylight. How long had she been gone? Which day was it? Whatever had happened, her parents were likely to worried…

There was the sudden sound of somebody laughing, and Lily looked round hastily. The noise was coming from an old man, who was huddled against the wall, apparently chuckling to himself and clutching a can of Muggle beer. When Lily looked at him, however, he looked up and caught her eye.

"I knowed you'd come back," he said wheezily, with a wide grin that disappeared suddenly as his eyes narrowed, "I di'n't take it. It weren't me. You seen that boy, have you?"

She stared at him.

"Take what?" she asked, "What boy?"

"That bitty silver necklace you dropped," he said sullenly, "It weren't me, I tell you. Ol' Robbie ain' a thief, whatever they say."

Lily's hand went to her neck, which was bare. Yes, she had been wearing her necklace that night with Tim. And now it was gone. She had not even noticed her loss before. At any other time, she might have been very upset, for the necklace meant a lot to her, but now all she felt was a slight increase of regret. Yet another thing she had lost.

"It were that boy," Robbie mumbled on, "That boy what came looking for you. Says 'e knew you, 'e did. Say's 'e'll tell you it weren' me. You seen 'im yet, angel? You ask 'im, 'e'll tell you. E' were a good boy, 'e were. Give me the change for a beer," and he waved the can at her, his grin suddenly returning.

A boy had come looking for her? Tim? He had not given the impression that he would care very much, even if she were mugged and raped, but perhaps he had changed his mind.

"What did he look like?" she asked urgently, "The person who was looking for me."

Old Robbie thought for a moment.

"Brown 'air," he said after a moment, "Nice-lookin'. 'E were a good boy."

This appeared to be the extent of his descriptive powers. Well, not Tim then; Tim was blonde. From the description, her mind leapt at once to her brother James, but really, it could have been anyone. What would Jamie be doing looking for her here? Come to that, what would anyone be doing looking for her here, except perhaps Tim? Maybe the old man had got the hair colour wrong.

But if somebody – anybody – was looking for her, that meant that people knew she'd gone.

"When was it?" she demanded, "When did you see him?"

Old Robbie thought again.

"'S'mornin', he said at last, "Right early it were too."

She glanced up. The sun was hot and high in the sky. It had to be midday or later. Time enough for the word to have spread. And if her parents had heard… Everything that had happened was suddenly subsumed in the knowledge that she had to get to them as soon as possible. Lily wasted no more time on small talk, but set off running for the corner.

* * * *

"_WHAT_?"

Hermione put a soothing hand on her sister-in-law's arm and tried to calm her down, but Ginny Potter wasn't feeling calm.

"What do you _mean_, she's travelled in time? How could this happen? Where's she gone? How do we get her back?" She jumped up from her chair and began to walk furiously up and down.

"Mum…" James began nervously, but Hermione interrupted.

"Ginny, please, just sit down and we can explain properly. I'm sure there'll be a way to get her back…"

Ginny turned to face her, white-faced.

"There _must_ be," she whispered. Again, Hermione put her hand on Ginny's arm, and this time the other woman allowed herself to be propelled into a chair. The fight had gone out of her as suddenly as it had come.

"Oh Lily," she cried, "Why did we let you take it?"

Hermione looked wretched.

"It's my fault," she said, "I should never have done it. And I certainly shouldn't have left it lying around. When we get her back, I'm going to destroy it, and never try my stupid experiments again…"

Ginny swallowed.

"No Hermione," she said softly, "It isn't your fault; at least no more than it's mine and Harry's. You warned us it wasn't safe, and we let her take it," tears appeared in her eyes, "Our little Lily," she looked desperately up at Hermione, "What can we do?"

Hermione shook her head.

"I'm thinking," she said, "There's no doubt about what happened. The effects described by the old man are just what I'd expect. And James and I have been to the spot where it happened, and there are definite traces of strong magic. Besides, James found her necklace there," Ginny gave a sound like an injured cat at the thought of Lily's necklace, but Hermione continued, a frown furrowing her forehead as she thought aloud, "Of course, she may be able to get back herself. She has the Time Turner after all. Although you shouldn't really need a Time Turner to get back to your own time. It shouldn't really be difficult to return to your own time. But of course we've got no way of knowing where she went, or what she may have found there. She should have bumped into some relative of hers pretty soon; they must have been there or the Time Turner wouldn't have activated itself. She was there when we were discussing it, wasn't she? So she ought to know how it works. It may – just _may_ – be possible to get an idea of where – or rather when – she went to, but it would be very tricky. It would involve some very complex magic, and I don't know for sure…" she broke off suddenly, "We ought to tell Harry. He needs to know, and he may have some ideas."

Ginny nodded. Her face was still very white but she seemed to have pulled herself together.

"James, go and floo your father's office, and tell him we need him here," she said quietly, "If he's not there… you'd better leave a message. Tell him to come as soon as possible."

James nodded.

"Right," he moved towards the door into the living room, where the fireplace was, but before he could move more than a few steps there was a loud crack from outside in the garden. Startled, they all moved towards the open window.

Standing in the fish pond, almost up to her knees in water, was a girl with long red hair, fastened up, clutching a small evening bag and a leather jacket. Ginny gave a strangled cry and made for the door.

* * * *

She had landed in the pond. Well, that wasn't as bad as it might have been. She was only a few feet from the path, and once, she had landed in the rose bush, which had been painful. Her brain was still numb from it all. She was home. It was over. And James and Lily and… and Sirius… were dead. All dead, and had been for years. But she had seen them just a few minutes ago, and for a few moments, she simply stood there, water soaking through her shoes and jeans, and up her legs, mud clouding up around her feet, as the pain of what she had done broke through the numbness. She had killed them. It was her fault. She thought of the expression on Sirius' face as she pointed her wand at him; at the fear in his voice when he had spoken of Azkaban…

And then there were running feet, and a pair of hands grabbed her and pulled her out of the pond, and a wonderfully familiar voice was saying "Lily! _Lily_!" over and over again.

And Lily collapsed into her mother's arms and cried as if her heart would break.

**Nooooooo!**

**But wait! What's that? That's not the end? **

**No, no, indeed it's not. Now really, we couldn't end like that could we? Still a few chapters to come I think…**


	10. Brightness in the Dark

**Disclaimer: I do not own JKR's characters or world**

**A/N: Well, judging by reviews, I seem to have you all intrigued and slightly confused by the turn of events. I'm glad I'm not being predictable anyway. I was very tempted to leave you all hanging on a bit longer to find out what happened, but I couldn't do it to you ;-)**

**The last chapter might be called End of Part One. This is Part Two. Almost a whole new plot. Except not quite. But this part does get even weirder; at least, I think so. Anyway, a special mention to arwenjanelilylyra again – apparently I made her cry, which is one of the greatest compliments anyone could give me (at least, if they're talking about my writing. I don't go round making people cry in general life). **

**So many people have added this story to their favourites and alerts, but haven't left a review. I love you all anyway, but I have a challenge for those silent readers: leave me at least one review between now and the end. It could be for this chapter, or it could be for the very last one; it could be a word, or it could be an essay. But please, please, if you've enjoyed this story (or even if you haven't, and now can't remember why you ever added it to your alerts in the first place) tell me what you're thinking.**

**Just a reminder: Italicised writing means the time where Lily is not. That is now the 1980s.**

_Albus Dumbledore flicked through the Daily Prophet and sighed deeply. It was still full of the latest story. The deaths of Lily and James Potter. The disappearance of Lord Voldemort. The miraculous survival of little Harry. The news had broken some days ago, of course, but the talk and speculation would take longer than that to die down. And of course, it had all been brought up again by yesterday's events. _

_Sirius Black. Who would have thought it? It had never occurred to Dumbledore that Sirius could be the traitor. Of course, a lot of people were now pointing out his background. It seemed that the Black in him ran deeper than anybody had thought. Dumbledore sighed again. He had always done his best to keep Sirius away from his family influences. It was for that reason that he had kept the boy at Hogwarts after that horrible incident at the end of his Fifth Year, despite other staff members calling for instant expulsion; Dumbledore had been of the opinion that Sirius was better off here, under his own influence, and that of people like James and Remus, than being sent home to the mercies of the Black family. But in the end, he had fallen, despite all Dumbledore's efforts. And now poor Peter Pettigrew had joined Lily and James, and Sirius was off to Azkaban, a fate that Dumbledore was not sure anyone deserved, whatever their crimes. And poor little Harry was an orphan. _The Boy Who Lived,_ they were calling him now. The memory of a sleeping face, with a head of black hair and that terrible scar, was still fresh in Dumbledore's mind, and he was still not absolutely sure that he had done the right thing. Minerva was quite certain that he had not, and was being very stiff with him. And Remus Lupin had been horrified. His angry letter was still on Dumbledore's desk. He had even offered to take the boy himself, a mark of his desperation, since Dumbledore knew that Lupin did not really consider himself a fit guardian for a baby. Poor Remus. Yet again, Dumbledore sighed. In a few short days, Remus' world had come tumbling down. All three of his best friends gone. What the boy must be going through…_

_And Sirius Black. Once again, Dumbledore's mind dwelt on the unbelievability of the fact that _Sirius,_ of all people, had betrayed James. Dumbledore liked to think that he knew his students well, and he had known those two better than most, thanks to the amount of trouble they had managed to get into. But try as he might, he could not make the Sirius Black he had known at Hogwarts into a Death Eater and a traitor. Sometimes, Dumbledore thought he must be getting old._

_And then, slipping into his mind so clearly that he was astonished that he had not thought of it earlier, he remembered the curious incident that had taken place nearly a year ago. The day Sirius had turned up in his office with a red-haired girl who claimed to be from the future, wanting to change the events she had told him were to come. Dumbledore had wondered at the time what it was that she had told him. Now, he thought he might have some idea. Which side had Sirius been on then? Was it the news of James and Lily's deaths that had upset him, or the news of Voldemort's fall and Sirius' own capture? Dumbledore wondered who the girl had been. She had not returned, so he had assumed that she had gone back to her own time, forty seven years into the future. He himself had taken the time to examine the device she had brought with her, and he thought he now had a reasonable idea of how it worked. If he was right, she must be some relation of one of the three people who had found her. She didn't look like a Black, and some of the looks he had caught Sirius giving her had suggested that she probably wasn't his great-niece. No, Dumbledore suspected that she was a Potter (although, he thought with something that was almost a smile, she had looked as though she might have some Weasley in her somewhere too). There had been something of James in the slope of her forehead. _

_But it was the way that incident had ended that had come so suddenly into his head. Her parting words to him before she apparated._

"Sirius would never betray James," _She had said, _"Not ever. I know he wouldn't"

_She had been giving him information, he realised now. Because she really did know. She came from the future. "If you ever doubt it, for whatever reason," she had said. She had known what was to come. She had known that he would come to doubt it. And she had been telling him, as clearly as she could, that Sirius was innocent._

_He had to admire her cleverness. He had not let her tell him anything, but she had done it anyway, without him even realising that she was telling him something. The Potters must have changed their Secret Keeper. But who to? Remus Lupin? Was it Remus after all? But no… Suddenly, Dumbledore thought he knew the truth. Why, after all, had Black been confronting Pettigrew in the street yesterday? And why would Peter have gone up to him like that? Bravery… well, perhaps. Stupidity… perfectly possible. But Dumbledore thought that Peter Pettigrew's instinct for self-preservation was better than that. He must have known that he didn't stand a chance in a duel against Sirius Black._

_Unless, of course, it was Peter Pettigrew who was the traitor. It made a certain sort of twisted sense. The rather stupid little boy who tagged along after those who were more popular, more powerful than himself. The boy nobody ever really noticed. It made sense, too, that he should have been Secret Keeper. It was exactly the sort of clever trick Sirius and James delighted in. Because nobody ever thought of Peter Pettigrew._

_He was right. Dumbledore was positive that he was right. The girl had given him the clue and suddenly all the things that had made no sense were clear. _

_The question was, what was he to do about it? Sirius had wanted to do something about it last November, and Dumbledore had stopped him. But things had gone too far now for him to worry about changing things. James and Lily had gone, and nothing could save them, but Sirius… Dumbledore could not let an innocent man suffer a life sentence in Azkaban. He pressed his fingers together, and gave himself over to deep thought._

_* * * *_

_The cold and the dark were all-consuming. Shivering, Sirius crouched on the floor, his back to the wall and his knees drawn up to his chest, his face buried in his arms. There was no happiness left; no hope. He tried desperately not to think of all the walls and locked doors that lay between him and freedom, as claustrophobia closed in and the despair washed over him. Images… memories he had tried to forget. Flashes of all the bad times as he was growing up. Bella's gloating face as she tormented him. His mother, cold and cruel, as she slapped him for some misdemeanour. His father, angrier than Sirius had ever seen him, after he had been sorted into Gryffindor. All the little things; the constant malice; the sarcasm; the punishments. And the big things too. The day, aged eight, when he looked up into the twisted face of his mother and realised that she did not love him. The punishment in the cellar at thirteen. The dark, growing hatred of his whole family. And the pain-filled nightmare that was his last evening at home, before he fled into the rain. _

_The day in Fifth Year when he made the biggest mistake of his life, and the expression of hurt and betrayal on Remus' face when he heard what Sirius had done. James' righteous fury, and the terrible, guilt-ridden weeks that followed when they refused to speak to him and he had thought he had lost his two best friends forever. _

_And, worse and more vivid than any of the rest, flooding into his mind and refusing to be dislodged; the horror of the house in Godric's Hollow. The blind, agonising despair when he had seen the blasted shell of a cottage. The terrible burning memory of Lily and James' bodies; James in the hallway and Lily… Lily in front of the cot, right there in front of Harry, who was crying for parents who would never come. Who cared that Voldemort had gone, if he had taken Lily and James with him? Over and over, Sirius saw those sights in his mind; the crying child, the spread of red curly hair across the carpet, and the lifeless staring face of his best and oldest friend. And the pain of it froze him; he couldn't remember anything but pain. There was no gleam of brightness in the dark, only blackness and despair._

_He ignored the steps outside his cell. Dementors came and went all the time, bringing with them an extra wave of cold as they passed… only there was no wave of cold this time, and presently a voice said:_

"_Sirius."_

_He had no idea how long he had been in here; it could have been hours or weeks. But it seemed like a long time since he had heard a kind, rational voice. It felt like a lifeline in an ocean of misery and, slowly, he looked up. No, it was not a dream or a hallucination. You didn't have good dreams here. Albus Dumbledore really was standing outside his cell._

"_P… Professor," he gasped, his voice sounding croaky, "Professor, please, you have to listen to me," how often had he said these words to the deaf-eared, stony-faced Aurors who had captured him? "I didn't do it, Professor, it wasn't me. I… I didn't betray them…"_

"_I know," Dumbledore interrupted him calmly, "I believe you."_

_Sirius stared at him, thinking for a moment that he had misheard. There were no dementors nearby (presumably Dumbledore had seen them off) and suddenly there was room for a tiny spark of hope inside him. He had thought that everybody believed him guilty. The Aurors had had no doubt. He had not even been given the courtesy of a trial. Nobody had contacted him; nobody had tried to help, not even Remus. _

_But Dumbledore believed him._

"_You… you do?" he whispered._

"_Yes. And I have two things to give you. Come here."_

_Sirius stared at him, open mouthed._

"_Mr Black," the faintest hint of irritation tinged Dumbledore's voice, "We do not have all day. Do you trust me?"_

"_I… yes…" He had nobody else to trust, after all._

"_Then come here. I am not allowed inside. They believe that you are a homicidal maniac."_

_Still not quite sure whether this was real or not, Sirius struggled to his feet. They had not been gentle when they had arrested him, and the cuts and bruises still ached. He stumbled over to the door. Dumbledore drew his wand, and calmly poked it through the bars and set it against Sirius' temple. Sirius flinched away, but Dumbledore looked steadily at him._

"_Trust me, Sirius," he said quietly. Then he closed his eyes, and Sirius saw his mouth move slightly as he performed complicated magic. And into Sirius's head flooded memories. His own memories. Memories that had been taken from him one November day almost a year ago. _

_He gasped with shock, as they returned. The girl that he and James had found on the ground… Lily… James' granddaughter. All the things she had told him. His own fate – a fate that was now coming true… And that night. The night in the Muggle hotel… Hogwarts the next day… waiting outside Dumbledore's office while she talked to him inside… Coming back in to find a wand pointed at him, and her face, twisted with pain._

"I'm sorry_," her voice came back to him, clear as a bell, "_Sirius, I'm so, so sorry_…"_

_And then… nothing._

_Reeling with shock, he staggered back and glared at Dumbledore, anger beginning to infiltrate his brain._

"_You… you took my memories…"_

"_And now I have given them back to you," Dumbledore said seriously, "I had no choice Sirius. And neither did she. You must see that."_

_Sirius stared at him._

"_Lily and James… we could have saved them…"_

"_No, we could not," Dumbledore said firmly, "Because whatever she told you – and remember, I still do not know what that was – were things that had already happened. There was nothing you could have done."_

"_Then why are you here?" demanded Sirius bitterly, "Because I'm supposed to be in here for twelve years." The anger broke into desperation at the end, and Dumbledore looked at him with pity._

"_What I should perhaps have said," he said quietly, "is that what she told you were _things she thought had happened._ I do not think that there is much possibility that she could have been wrong about Lily and James; that they could have been alive when she believed them to have been dead."_

_Sirius thought about this._

"_I suppose not," he admitted quietly._

"_But," Dumbledore went on, "There is the possibility that she could have been wrong about you…"_

"_I doubt it," the bitter tone was back in Sirius' voice, "She seemed pretty sure."_

"_And so she would be, if that was what everyone believed had happened."_

_Sirius stared at the Headmaster, trying to work out what Dumbledore was telling him. Was there some way he could escape, and yet everyone still believe him to be in Azkaban for the next twelve years? That was impossible. Wasn't it?_

"_I didn't even know it was possible to give somebody back their memories after they've been obliviated," he said eventually._

"_It is not possible for most people," said Dumbledore serenely, "I, however, am not most people. Now, I said I had two things to give you. The first was your memory. The second… is this."_

_And he held up a chain on which swung a small gold pendant shaped like an hour glass._

_Sirius gaped at it._

"_The… the Time Turner? But sir… how have you got it? Didn't she go back? What happened to her?"_

"_Oh yes, she went back," Dumbledore smiled faintly, "But you do not need a Time Turner to return to your own time. Only to visit somebody else's."_

_The last words were spoken with a significance Sirius could not miss._

"_You mean… you want me to… to go to another time?"_

"_Forty seven years, I think she said," said Dumbledore musingly, "That should be safe enough, I think."_

"_You're sending me to another time?" Sirius sounded incredulous._

"_Mr Black, I am not _sending_ you anywhere. You are perfectly welcome to stay here if you wish. For another twelve years, I believe you said."_

_There was a short silence._

"_But I can't," Sirius said eventually, "I can't go to… her time. There's nobody closely related to me there. At least, if there is, I doubt if they're within wand range of this cell."_

"_Ah, no," said Dumbledore thoughtfully, "But I have put a little work into studying this device. I do not believe that it necessarily has to be a blood relative of yours to work. I believe somebody whom you feel close to would work just as well. I am right in thinking that you _were _close to that young lady, am I not?"_

"_I… yes, I suppose so," muttered Sirius, feeling himself flush, "But she isn't going to be in Azkaban either."_

"_No. Do you know where she is likely to be?"_

"_Well… I know where she lives…more or less…" And if she wasn't there, chances were Harry would be. Did he count as someone Sirius felt close to? Surely he must, even though Sirius had only known him as a baby. _

"_Excellent," said Dumbledore happily, "Well, I suggest, Sirius, that you transform. The dementors are less likely to detect an animal, and you should be able to slip out of the bars I imagine…"_

"_What?" Sirius started back, "You… you _know_?"_

_Dumbledore looked amused._

"_My dear boy, I have known for some time. Ingenious of you all…most reprehensible, of course, but ingenious nonetheless. And most useful now."_

_Sirius shook his head. He felt that he wouldn't be surprised at anything more now. _

"_But Professor. As soon as I'm gone, they're going to notice. And the whole point is that nobody can know I've escaped. At least not for twelve years."_

_At this, Dumbledore positively beamed._

"_Ah, yes. Now you have hit upon the cleverest part of this plan. Indeed, I am really rather pleased with this little invention. I have been working on it for some time now, and I believe I have now perfected it…" from out of his robes, he drew what looked like a small metal box, "Inside this box," he said happily, "is a Spirit Impersonator. When it is opened, it releases a force that, to all intents and purposes, replicates the sense of a human. It is not remotely sentient, and it would not stand up to close magical inspection. I do not believe that outside this prison, it would fool a dementor, as they can sense human emotions acutely, and this does not have true emotions. However in here, they are surrounded by a positive sea of human misery. They are not going to notice that one cell is lacking any emotion. I have charmed it to look like you, or rather as you might look after a significant stay in here; more to guard against human visitors than anything, as dementors cannot really see much. I have even," he added proudly, "installed in it a capacity to store memories. If you put some of your memories inside it, it will display some of your reactions. I think that ought to be enough to fool any casual visitor. It will last as long as we want it to. I will charm it, so that after twelve years, it simple fades away. At that point, the dementors will realise your absence, and will imagine that you have only just escaped."_

_Sirius was staring at Dumbledore with open-mouthed astonishment._

"_Come now, Mr Black," the Professor said briskly, "We don't want to take longer than we can help over this. Choose some memories to give it. Unless, of course, you would rather remain here…?"_

"_No," said Sirius emphatically, "No, I wouldn't. I'll give it a go."_

**I hope the first half of this chapter didn't get too boring. I didn't realise as I wrote it just how much of the chapter is purely Dumbledore's thought processes. But those thought processes are quite important, so they needed to be written…**

**The review button is right there underneath :-) **


	11. Old Friends and Unfamiliar Faces

**Disclaimer: I do not own JKR's characters or world**

**A/N: Well, after the last two chapters, a relaxation in intensity. At least I hope so. The story is… er… quite different from now on. I've also decided to vary it a bit by using several different points of view, so it's less Lily focussed, although her POV will be there too, though not so much in this chapter. **

**Brownies to arwenjanelilylyra, ermireallydon'tcare, Katara97 and KThxBai for the reviews on the last chapter. Glad you appreciated the latest twist and hope you like the results. Come on the rest of you, start answering my challenge! Brownies for anyone who does :-)**

It was one of those bright, warm days in the middle of spring when it really might be August not April, and the garden of the house in Barnstaple – Ginny's pride and joy – was a mass of daffodils and violas.

"You've got it looking lovely this year," said Hermione, looking round appreciatively. Ginny laughed and scratched the head of a medium-sized, scruffy-looking dog that lay at her feet.

"Not much credit to me. All you've got to do with these things is stick them in and they just take off.

The dog looked hopefully at the biscuit Hermione was eating, and Hermione shifted away slightly. Ginny noted this with a smile. Hermione was a cat person, but she herself was rather fond of all animals. The dog – who was not much more than a puppy, and was named Cuthbert – had been a recent gift from her younger son Albus – to stop her and Harry getting lonely, now that Lily had moved out, he had said with the grin that was so like his father's.

But there was not really much chance of them getting lonely. Friends and family 'popped in' so often that Harry was sometimes heard to grumble that he wouldn't mind the odd weekend just the two of them. Not that the current company was ever a cause for complaint. Hermione and Ron were always welcome, and having all three children home was a rare treat these days. Ginny looked thoughtfully over at her daughter, who was curled up on the grass close to where her mother and aunt sat on garden chairs, enjoying the sunshine. James and Al had taken a stroll into town, but Lily had said she would stay. Lily hadn't quite been herself for a long time now; not, in fact, since last summer, when the mysterious time-travelling incident had occurred. Ginny suspected that they still did not know the full story of what had occurred in the brief time she had been gone. She had told them, of course. She had spilled her heart out, as soon as she had stopped crying enough to talk. Ginny could understand why it had upset her. She had met people, not much older than herself, who were going to die, and she hadn't been able to do anything. They could tell her it wasn't her fault until they were blue in the face – and they just about had – but anybody could see that the guilt was still getting to her. That was what worried Ginny; that it had been eight months, and her daughter was still upset about it. Not that she showed she was upset. Most of the time, she went on as normal. Roxanne had got her a job at the Boutique in Diagon Alley, where Roxy herself was Assistant Manager, and Lily seemed to be enjoying it. She was sharing a flat with Molly these days. Molly was a bit of a mother hen (it never ceased to astonish Ginny how similar Molly could be to her grandmother and namesake in temperament) but she and Lily rubbed along surprisingly well together, and Ginny had to admit that it was a relief to know that Molly was there to keep an eye on her flighty daughter.

But for all Lily appeared to be living an entirely normal life, the family could tell that something was not right. The more distant members of the family might believe that Lily was simply growing up, but Ginny knew her daughter better than that. She was more reserved than was natural for her, and when she did chatter and laugh with the others, there was a brittle note to it. And sometimes Ginny caught her daughter staring off into space with a sad expression on her face. Lily had always been a dreamer, but she had never been sad, and Ginny suspected that on those occasions she was thinking of the three young people she had tried and failed to save.

"Would you like another cup of tea, Hermione?" Ginny asked, and when Hermione assented, "I'll go in and put the kettle on."

"I'll go," Lily jumped up and headed indoors.

Hermione laughed and shook her head.

"I wish my children offered to go and put the kettle on. They're too like Ron."

Ginny laughed too.

"Oh, Lily's helpful enough. You just have to be careful she doesn't forget what she's doing. She once tried to make tea with cold water because she forgot she hadn't boiled it yet. She's a lot better than she used to be though."

Hermione leaned forwards.

"And how is she? I mean…"

Ginny knew what she meant and spoke quickly.

"Better, I think. The job suits her, and I think the independence is doing her good. She still broods sometimes, though."

Ron and Harry emerged from the house carrying bottles of beer and laughing about something, and Ginny pulled a face at Hermione and changed the subject back to the garden. Hermione understood. Harry too had been a little upset by the whole incident last summer. He had had a long talk with Lily, and tried to get her to see that it wasn't her fault, but she had remained unconvinced, and he had worried about her; he knew what it was like to carry guilt for something you could never have helped. It had been very odd for him, too, that his daughter had met his parents and Sirius; people who, for Harry, were part of far-off childhood dreams and memories. The rawness of the grief he had felt for them (and Ginny knew how acute that grief had been, even for the parents he had never really known) had faded over the years, and Lily's story had thrown him back.

Ron threw himself down on the grass and cracked open the beer, while Harry took the remaining garden chair. Cuthbert, delighted that somebody had joined him on the ground, promptly flung himself on Ron and proceeded to wash his face thoroughly until Harry pulled him off.

"Bloody dog," muttered Ron, wiping his rather wet face.

Ginny grinned and poked her brother with a foot.

"Well… how's retirement suiting you Ron? You look like you're getting a bit fat…"

"I'm not getting fat!" he retorted indignantly, "And I'm not retired either, for that matter. I've just… changed direction a bit, that's all. Actually, it's a bloody relief," he looked at Harry, "I'm telling you, Harry, get out of it while you've still got all your limbs intact."

"I can't see myself losing limbs, the sort of work I do," said Harry, with amusement. As Head of the Auror office, he didn't do much in the way of practical jobs these days. Ron, however, had decided that thirty years as an Auror was plenty, and that he wanted a less strenuous job. George, as it happened, had been looking for a new partner, and so Ron, to slight disapproval from Hermione, who thought he was throwing away a highly successful career, had moved from catching dark wizards to selling tricks and jokes. It appeared to be suiting him though, and Hermione had resigned herself to it when she realised how much more relaxed and happy he was now.

It was just at that moment when a sudden gust of wind blew strongly across the garden. They all looked up in surprise, for it had been a still day, and as they looked, a golden light began to glow. Ron swore and jumped to his feet, and Harry and Ginny both drew their wands. Cuthbert whined and ran underneath the garden table. Hermione, who recognised the signs, sat where she was, frozen in astonishment and horror. From out of the middle of the light, a figure stumbled into the garden, just a few feet from them.

He was a young man, with long black hair tied loosely back and several days' growth of beard. He looked significantly the worse for wear; he was white and haggard-looking, with dark shadows under his eyes and quite a few fading bruises and half-healed cuts showing. His clothes were dirty, wet and torn, and his hands looked half mangled.

Harry, Ginny and Ron all trained their wands on him.

"Who the hell are you?" Ron demanded roughly.

"Ron," whispered Hermione, who was beginning to have an idea of who he was, but none of the others heard her.

The young man looked up, and despite the mess his face was in, Harry took a sharp breath.

"No," he muttered, "No… no it can't be."

The young man was looking frantically around him.

"It must have worked… I must have found the right place… or I wouldn't be here…"

His eyes fixed on Harry's face and widened.

"You… you're…"

Harry interrupted grimly.

"How did you get here?"

Silently, the young man held up an item they all recognised.

"Er… I think this might belong to one of you…"

"The Time Turner?" said Ron, incredulously.

"But Lily said she gave it to Dumbledore!" Hermione cried.

The young man pushed his hair out of his eyes. He looked, Ginny thought, exhausted, and as though he might be in pain. He looked warily at them all.

"Dumbledore gave it to me… You... you… do you know who I am?"

"I know who you look like," Harry said, the grimness in his voice not abating, "But why don't you confirm it for us?"

The young man swallowed.

"I'm Sirius Black. And… and you're Harry Potter. Right?" Nervously, he eyed the wands still trained on him, "I know it must be hard for you to believe… I don't know what Lily told you…"

"What she told us," said Ron, as Harry seemed to have been struck silent, "was that she and Dumbledore removed all memory of her from you. But that doesn't seem to be true."

"Oh it's true," the slightest hint of a bleak smile pulled at the corner of Sirius' mouth, "I didn't remember anything, for a whole year. But Dumbledore came to see me… gave me my memories back…"

"That's not possible," said Hermione flatly, "Not after a Memory Charm."

"That's what I thought. But apparently it is possible, for Dumbledore," said Sirius, "Anyway… he did it. And I remember… remember everything…" an almost haunted look came over his face, but he did his best to pull himself together, "He gave me the Time Turner. Helped me escape…"

"Escape?" some of the grimness had left Harry's voice, "You were already in Azkaban?"

Sirius nodded, horror passing through his eyes.

"No," Hermione rose from her seat and walked around the table that was between her and the young man, so that she was only a few feet away from him. A frown of concentration was on her face.

"That's not how it works," she said, "Dumbledore knew that. That's why he persuaded Lily to do what she did. You cannot change the past. You didn't escape from Azkaban for twelve _years_, and it obviously hasn't been anything like that long. Besides, Dumbledore believed you were guilty until Harry and I told him that you weren't. And that was in 1994."

He shook his head.

"I… I don't know. I don't know why he did it… But he said he believed me."

There was a sudden loud crash from behind them. Everybody looked up with a jump, and turned to see Lily standing on the path, a shocked expression on her face and a tray that had held a teapot and several cups lying in smithereens on the ground, while Lily's hands were still held out in front of her, as though she hadn't noticed that she had dropped it. Her eyes were fixed in disbelief on the black-haired young man.

"_No_," she whispered, "You can't be here…"

"Lily," he began, and broke off.

Her eyes widened further.

"You remember me? You weren't supposed to remember me!" her eyes swept over him, "Merlin, you look terrible, what happened…?" and then realisation dawned in her face, "It's happened, hasn't it? And Dumbledore…" her mouth twisted with emotion, "He understood… He remembered… It worked! But… it can't have."

"Lily," her mother broke in, "What on earth are you talking about?"

"I said to him," Lily looked at Ginny but her eyes were bright with unshed tears and her voice sounded distant, "Before I left, I said to Dumbledore that Sirius would never betray James and Lily. I said that I _knew_. I know… I know I shouldn't have. But I didn't really think. I didn't think it could change anything…" the distant look vanished and she frowned, "How can it have changed things?"

Nobody had an answer for her. In the silence that followed, Sirius slid slowly down until he was sitting on the ground. His eyes had lost focus slightly. Hermione, who was now closest to him, stepped forward and grabbed his arm.

"Merlin, you're exhausted and no wonder," she looked round accusingly at the four stunned faces around her, "He's just escaped from Azkaban and travelled nearly fifty years into the future. The least we can do is let him sit down and give him something to eat before we start demanding answers."

Ginny, too, pulled herself together.

"Yes, of course we must. I'm sorry… Sirius." It sounded odd to call him that. The name for so long had meant Harry's godfather; a man who, to her fifteen-year-old self had seemed middle-aged. Although, she realised now with slight amusement, he had been considerably younger than she was herself now. But he had been an adult while she had been a child, and now the roles were reversed. Not that the young man with dazed eyes who was now sitting on one of the vacated garden chairs was exactly a child; but he was no older than her own offspring. The thought that he was the same person as the other Sirius she had known was bizarre in the extreme. She glanced at Harry, who was looking at the young man with a closed expression in his eyes. If it was odd for her, how much stranger it must be for him. She placed a hand on his arm and squeezed slightly. He looked at her in mild surprise, and then gave her a small smile.

"I'll go and make some more tea," she said, gently, glancing at the mess on the path, "Lily, come with me and give me a hand. When did you last have something to eat, Sirius?"

He made an effort to stir himself at the sound of his voice, and thought about the question.

"Last night. I caught a rabbit."

Ginny recoiled slightly from this thought (he surely couldn't have had the means to cook the rabbit…?) but forced herself to smile.

"I'll get you something. You must be starving. Lily…"

Lily pulled herself out of the daze she was in with a start, and followed her mother to the house wordlessly, casting a backward glance at the group on the lawn. Ginny was sure her daughter would want to talk to Sirius, and she was also sure that everyone would have questions for Lily, but she thought it might be an idea to give Harry a chance to talk to the young man without the added complication of his daughter's presence.

Sirius, now that he was sitting down, seemed to have revived a little, and looked around him.

"I… I'm sorry about this," he said weakly.

Ron chuckled slightly.

"Well, I have to admit it's not quite what we expected from the day. But I expect we'll live. I'm Ron Weasley, by the way. I've met you, but you won't know me."

Sirius smiled at him.

"Lily… mentioned you. And you must be Mrs Weasley," he said to Hermione, "Lily's Aunt Hermione. You made the Time Turner…"

"I didn't make it," Hermione corrected him, "I only modified it. But yes, I'm Hermione Weasley. Mrs Weasley is my mother-in-law, though. Call me Hermione, Sirius," she smiled wryly, "You always used to. Although I was fourteen when you met me, so that's not very surprising."

Sirius nodded, and his eyes slid on to Harry.

"Well, this is odd, to say the least," Harry said, in a forcedly light tone, "Last time I saw you was more than thirty years ago, and you were thirty six."

The corner of Sirius' mouth twitched.

"Well, it's pretty strange for me as well. The last time I saw you was only a few weeks ago. And you were fifteen months."

The smile faded as he remembered exactly how he had last seen Harry, watching him born away in Hagrid's arms that terrible night in Godric's Hollow.

Harry smiled wryly.

"Yes, I suppose it must be."

Sirius looked around at them. Harry, Ron and Hermione. People he didn't know. People who were the same sort of age as his parents, and yet the generation of his children, if he had any.

"I… I don't know what I'm going to do," he confessed.

"In what way?" Hermione asked, "You mean… whether or not to go back?"

A dark shadow passed over his face.

"I can't go back. There's nothing there for me."

They looked at each other.

"You have to think very carefully about this Sirius," said Hermione, gently, "I… I see why you've done this, and of course I'm very glad Dumbledore helped you escape. But… this isn't your time. You don't belong here…"

"And I do belong there?" he interrupted, "Where everyone thinks I'm a murderer?"

Hermione sighed.

"Much as I hate to say it, yes. You do belong there, even though everyone thinks you're a murderer. I'm not telling you what to do. I'm only saying you need to think about it. _We_ need to think about it. I don't understand how this is possible, with everything we know about what happened," she looked round at Harry and Ron for some support. Harry was obviously still struggling to recover from the shock of a twenty one-year-old version of his dead godfather appearing in his garden. But Ron, after a few minutes of open-mouthed astonishment, had pulled himself together.

"She's right," he said firmly, "You have to understand. We _know_ what happened. We were there. You spent twelve years in Azkaban, and then you escaped…"

"No," said Harry suddenly, and they looked at him, "Think about it. What you just said, Ron; it isn't true. We weren't there while he spent twelve years in Azkaban. We were only there when he turned up at Hogwarts in 1994."

"Yes, but Harry," began Hermione impatiently, but he talked over her.

"This is Dumbledore's doing, let's remember. He knew what he was doing, sending Sirius here. Of course we have to think it over; it isn't all clear cut and simple. It isn't a light decision, to leave your own time behind. But Dumbledore knew he couldn't change the way things happen; he must have allowed for that. I think we need to hear the full story, first…" he looked at Sirius.

"I agree. But not until he's had something to eat," said Hermione firmly, "And he's hurt…"

"Not much," Sirius roused himself at this, "I'm fine, honestly. I've had much worse. I just need to eat…"

"Then eat this," Ginny had appeared behind them with a tray, "And then talk."

He ate as though he hadn't had a square meal for days. Which he probably hadn't, Harry thought, as he watched the young man who his head was telling him was his godfather, but his eyes were informing him was the same age as his sons. Sirius gratefully accepted the beer Ron quietly passed him, but nobody asked him a single question until he had finished. Lily emerged with another tea tray, which she did not drop this time, and the tea was poured out and drunk in silence.

Sirius was grateful to them. They must be burning with curiosity, but they were letting him eat and recover. It must be a bigger shock for them than for him, but they were accepting him calmly. He allowed himself just one glance at Lily. She was watching him, her face blank. He wondered what she was thinking, and wished he could talk to her alone. He didn't blame her for what she had done, but he could not help feeling hurt. Had everything that had happened really meant so little to her? Of course, she had said quite clearly that it had meant nothing, and he had agreed. Because it hadn't meant anything. But still… for her to have wiped his memories like that. And James and Lily… had they meant nothing to her either? But of course they hadn't. They weren't _her_ best friends; they were her long-dead grandparents, and she had her life here, and she had returned to get on with it. And now he had followed her. He wished he could see behind the mask and know what she was thinking.

With a small sigh, he finished eating and sat back. There would be no putting off the questions now, but he didn't really want to answer them. He didn't want to think about what had happened. It would feel like digging around in wounds that had not even started to heal yet. And his whole body ached and smarted, and he wanted nothing more than to sleep the dreamless sleep that had been denied him in Azkaban. But first, he knew he would have to talk. He owed it to these people.


	12. Staying or Going?

**Disclaimer: I do not own JK Rowling's characters or world**

**A/N: Another chapter. Updates are going to be irregular for a bit, because I have an exam on Wednesday and a major deadline the following week. Hope this doesn't seem like too much of a filler chapter; it isn't really, because the characters' reactions to Sirius' appearance in 2027 are really important. But I found it quite hard to write, and there are bits I'm not really sure about.**

**Thanks to thegreatpersonwhoeverlived, if you're still reading – I don't mind unsigned reviews at all, any reviews are very welcome! I'm glad you're enjoying it, but I have to say I'm not quite sure what you mean? I like to take constructive criticism seriously, so I would really appreciate it if you could clarify – do you mean that the chapters are too short? Because I am deliberately cutting the chapters off at key points – I want to keep the tension going and not let too much out at once. **

**Do other people feel I should be including more in each chapter? **

**On the other hand, it's worth noting that if I make the chapters twice as long, there will also be a longer wait between updates :-) **

As Sirius prepared himself mentally to relive the last few painful weeks, there were two loud pops behind him, and he jumped and looked up. Then almost wished he hadn't. One of the young men standing staring at him looked so much like James had the last time Sirius had seen him that he almost forgot to breathe. But it wasn't James. The eyes were wrong. The wrong colour, and the wrong shape.

These must surely be Lily's brothers.

"Oh…" the other young man, who was maybe a year or two older than Sirius, and had brown hair and a resemblance to Lily, looked surprised and puzzled, "Hey… I didn't know we were having visitors…"

"Jamie… Al…" Ginny jumped to her feet, "Come here boys. Something… rather extraordinary has happened…"

The one who looked like James, but confusingly seemed to be Albus, was staring at Sirius, his eyes narrowed.

"Hold on. Is that…?"

Harry sighed.

"Yes, Al. It appears your namesake didn't keep the Time Turner Lily gave him," so they all knew the story, Sirius thought, "So we have a visitor from the past. Boys, this is Sirius Black. Sirius, my sons. James and Albus."

Sirius looked at two shocked faces, and smiled slightly.

"Hey."

"No way…" James muttered, shaking his head, "How…? I mean, why…?"

"Well, I'd have thought 'how,' was fairly obvious," Lily spoke suddenly, "He used the Time Turner, James."

James scowled at her, and seemed about to say something, but Albus, after a shocked moment, had strolled across to Sirius.

"Albus," he said gravely, holding out his hand, and running shrewd eyes over the other young man.

"Er… hi," Sirius shook the hand in a dazed way, very careful not to put too much pressure on the skin of his palm, which was very painful, "Shit. You look a lot like…"

"Dad. I know." The corner of Al's mouth curved slightly.

"Actually," Sirius gave a painful half-smile, "I was going to say James…" he broke off and stared at the ground, swallowing hard.

Of course, Harry thought with a wince. Everyone had always told him how much _he _looked like his father, and Albus looked like Harry, there was no doubt about that. And Al, unlike Harry, was about the same age now that James had been when he died, so it was no wonder that the resemblance had struck Sirius. And that was a bizarre thought in itself. By that age, the first James Potter had been married and settled with a young son. And Albus… Al was just a kid.

But he was looking Sirius over in a very professional way, while Jamie was still gaping like a fish in the background.

"You don't look too good," Al said quietly.

"I'm fine," Sirius said quickly.

"Of course you're not fine!" Hermione exclaimed, "Look at yourself. You've got cuts and bruises all over you, you look as though you haven't slept in a week or eaten in a month…"

"Somebody should probably take a look at some of those," Albus said mildly, nodding at some of the worst wounds, "And what happened to your hands, if you don't mind me asking?"

Sirius sighed, not having the energy to argue.

"Nothing very bad. I just… came a long way as a dog. They got all blistered and torn up. My feet are the same…"

"You walked all the way from Azkaban?" Ron exclaimed, "Bloody hell! Why didn't you apparate?"

Sirius glanced at Lily, whose mask slipped slightly for the first time, as her lips twitched. He betrayed nothing, however.

"Don't have a wand," he said, his indifferent tone hiding his misery at this state of affairs. Everybody winced.

"Well…" Al said, leaving this statement to one side, "I'm not quite finished training, but I am a Healer. I'll sort them out, if you want."

Sirius looked as though he might be going to brush his injuries off again, but then he looked at his hands and changed his mind.

"Er… yeah, that would be great actually. Thanks."

At Albus' request, he spread his hands out palm up on the table, and Al examined them closely, then took his wand out and began to methodically clean and heal each cut, bruise and burst blister.

"Is anyone actually going to explain what the hell's going on?" James demanded, sounding a little bit annoyed, "I mean… this is actually Sirius Black? As in, Dad's godfather, Sirius Black? Who Lily met last summer?"

"It looks like it," Ginny said wryly.

"But…" James ran his hand through his hair in a way that made Sirius' eyes widen slightly, and then flicker with a pain that had nothing to do with what Albus was doing to his hands, "But… how is he here? And I get that he came with the Time Turner, Lily, but how does he even _have_ the Time Turner? _Why_ is he here? I thought you couldn't change the past, and all that bullshit. What happened to that? He shouldn't be _here. _He should be in Azkaban right now."

"And he's sitting right there!" Lily said heatedly, "Stop talking about him like that."

"And you," James swung round to her, accusingly, ignoring her words, "You said you'd modified his memory, so he wouldn't even remember you. How did that work, if he's here?"

"Stop it, Jamie," said Albus mildly, not taking his eyes off what he was doing, "I should think we'd all like to know all that, but there's no need to be an arsehole about it."

To everybody's surprise, Sirius laughed suddenly, a slight lightness showing through the darkness in his eyes.

"It's okay," he said, "Now I know how Lily felt when she first appeared in our time. And then I was the one who kept asking questions and demanding answers. To be honest," he said to James, "I'm not even sure I know all the answers myself. But I'll tell you anything you want to know… If I can."

"Right," James looked a little ashamed of himself, "Sorry. It's just… well, this is all a bit weird."

"But I think, as Albus said, we'd all like some answers," said Hermione, gently.

Sirius flinched as Al's wand found a particularly deep cut, but nodded, took a deep breath, and began to tell his story.

He started with Azkaban. He couldn't bring himself to go back further, and they knew all the earlier bits anyway. He glossed over the time he had spent in prison, but they all saw the shiver, and the fear in his eyes as he remembered. However light his voice was.

"How long were you in there for?" Harry interrupted.

Sirius looked at him.

"I… I don't know. I lost track," he smiled; that smile that wasn't really a smile, Lily thought; "It gets a bit monotonous in there, if you know what I mean. One day's much like any other."

He told them of Dumbledore's visit, and his plan, and of the return of his memories, and the Spirit Impersonator (Hermione looked fascinated at this bit). His voice cracked slightly when he told them how Dumbledore had believed he was innocent, and his eyes found Lily's. The expression in them was too much for her, and she looked away.

"And then…" he shrugged, "I transformed and escaped. It was easy. I could have done it any time, only I wouldn't have had anywhere to go. I had to swim ashore. And then… I came here. It took me a while. I didn't know the way… But I found it, in the end."

"But I don't understand," said Hermione, with a frown, when he had stopped talking, "The Time Turner only works when there is a family connection… Nobody here is actually your family, not by blood."

"Er… actually, Dumbledore thought it didn't need to be a blood relative," Sirius explained, "He said that anyone you had a strong emotional connection to would do."

"Really?" said Hermione, startled, "How extraordinary! That wasn't what my tests showed. I wonder if Dumbledore…" she broke off, looking thoughtful.

"And so the Time Turner pulled you to where Harry was," said Ginny, quietly. Sirius nodded.

"Looks like it. But I don't know what I'm going to do now."

"Well, you can't very well go back," James remarked, "That would make the whole thing a bit pointless. And if Dumbledore meant you to stay here…"

"Well, that _would _be fine," Albus pointed out, having finished healing Sirius' hands, "If we didn't know that Sirius Black escaped from prison in 1993, narrowly escaped recapture in 1994, spent two years in hiding and then…" he broke off.

"Was killed by his favourite cousin, the ever-lovely Bellatrix," Sirius finished dryly, "Don't worry. I know what's supposed to happen."

"What _already did_ happen," Hermione put in, firmly, "Sirius, it isn't possible to change things. And even if it was, just think of all the things that would do," she looked around at the others, "Imagine, for a moment, that Sirius had never escaped from Azkaban in our Third Year. If he had simply disappeared from the Wizarding World. We would never have known that Pettigrew was a traitor. We would never have known that Ron's rat was an animagus…"

"And if Pettigrew hadn't run away, Voldemort would never have come back to power, would he?" James asked, "That can only be a good thing, can't it?"

"Can it?" Hermione said, in exasperation, "Think about it, Jamie! Just think of all the things, big and small, that that would change. Yes, there might be people alive today who died in that war. But the obvious consequences aren't the only ones. You want an example? No Voldemort. No Order of the Phoenix. Remus and Tonks would never have met. _Teddy wouldn't even exist_. Would you do that, Jamie?"

James stared at her, slightly horrified realisation coming over his face as he thought of the young man who was practically his older brother.

"You cannot change the past without changing the present," Hermione finished quietly, "Perhaps in ways you can't even imagine," she turned and looked at Sirius, her eyes deadly serious, "Sirius, it has to be your own decision. But if you did decide to stay here… in twelve years, when you're the right age, you'd have to go back."

Sirius laughed hollowly.

"And if I decide to go back now… what do I do? Walk back into Azkaban and say "Don't worry, boys. I may have been the first person in history to escape from this place, but no need to panic; I'm back now!""

James snorted with laughter at this, but straightened his face when everybody except Sirius glared at him.

"No," said Hermione stiffly, "What you'd have to do would be to stay in hiding. That Spirit Impersonator thing that Dumbledore made will wear out in twelve years. And then they'd realise you'd gone, and you could reappear. Not easy. I don't know how you'd ensure that nobody ever caught a glimpse of you. You'd have to stay as a dog."

Sirius looked distinctly unimpressed with this idea.

"And you think I could wait for twelve years, knowing exactly where Peter Pettigrew is without going after him?" he asked flatly, and looked at Ron and Ginny, "Ever notice a big black dog hanging around your family home?"

Ginny smiled slightly, but Ron looked startled.

"Well…" he said, as if he had just had a very strange thought, "Uncle Bilius always did say he'd seen a grim…"

"Oh, rubbish, Ron," said Ginny, "The man was an alcoholic."

"No way," said Sirius, firmly, "No. I couldn't do it. Peter might be able to spend twelve years as an animal, but I couldn't. I can't spend twelve years in hiding. It would be almost as bad as Azkaban. I might as well not be free at all," he looked around, "It would be simple here," he said, almost pleadingly, "I'm officially innocent here, aren't I?"

"Well, yes," Ron gave a grimace, "But you're also officially _dead_ here. I'm not sure I'd call it 'simple.'"

"We'd deal with it," Harry spoke for the first time for some minutes, and his voice was expressionless, "If you stay here, we could deal with the technicalities. But Hermione's right. You've got to decide whether you can deal with going back again in twelve years. Because you would have to go back. And you'd have to be a _bloody_ good actor."

Sirius grinned faintly.

"Oh, I reckon I could manage that part all right. But…" he looked around at them, the slight smile lingering, despite an anxious expression in his eyes, "I won't have anywhere to go, in this time. I don't have anybody I know… except you. I'm going to be a bit of a nuisance."

"_Do you want me here?" _was what he was really asking, and the question was directed at Harry. However bizarre it was for Sirius to see his godson as a man twice his age, it must be worse for Harry. Because at least Harry looked different enough from his fifteen-month-old self for Sirius to be unable, really, to think of him as the same person. But Sirius himself must be recognisable. Recognisable as the man Harry had known as a boy; a man he had looked to as a father-figure. A man who had died.

For a moment that stretched out forever, they looked at each other; Sirius questioning, Harry blank, his eyes stern.

Then the stern look collapsed, and an expression of almost amused resignation appeared.

"I daresay you will," and now he was serious again, but his face had softened, and he was looking at Sirius with a whole host of emotions showing, his eyes quietly intense, "But, if you want… if that's what you decide, you have a home here for as long as you need it."

For another long moment, Sirius stared at the man his godson had grown into, looking for the genuine feeling behind the words. Then he relaxed. And smiled.

"Then I'm staying. There's nothing for me there."

Lily made a sound as though she had been holding her breath for a long time and had just let it out. Ginny was beaming. Ron looked a little gobsmacked by the turn of events. Al was smiling to himself, and James, after a moment of blank amazement, also grinned.

Hermione looked at Harry. She was smiling faintly, but there was a thoughtful look on her face. Harry smiled back briefly.

"Well…" James broke the silence, throwing himself down on the grass and pulling Cuthbert out from under the table to fondle his ears, "This should be interesting anyway."

"If we've got that out of the way," said Al, "I can clean up some of the rest of those cuts. You said your feet were just as bad…"

It was anything but normal, Sirius thought, as he pulled his boots off and examined the soles of his feet, which were really in a terrible state. But they were making an effort, all of them. An effort to smile and pretend he was just an ordinary visitor. James, obviously desperately curious but knowing that certain questions couldn't be asked yet, was satisfying himself with more general questions about life in the 70s, which Sirius, in between winces and hisses of pain, was happy to answer. Yes, they were all making an effort to look happy.

Except one.

Lily sat at the table, staring down and looking anywhere but Sirius, her face frozen. She had not spoken since she had told James to stop talking about Sirius as though he wasn't there, and although he glanced frequently at her, she did not seem to have moved much either.

He wished he knew what she was thinking. The Lily who sat there, stony-faced and still, was not the Lily he and James had found in the street in London, or the Lily who had agonised as she told them the story of what was to come, or the Lily who had flirted with him and laughed at him and told him off for being inappropriate. It was not the Lily who had held him close as he wept in the dark, or the Lily with whom he had shared that one sweet night…

No, he would not think of that night. It had been a single, stupid mistake of a night; they had been clear on that. She was probably regretting it bitterly, and even more so since he had just forced himself back into her life. He wanted to reassure her; to let her know, with a look or a smile, that he expected nothing; that whatever her life here held, he would get in the way of nothing.

But he couldn't, because she never looked at him.

* * * *

Later, just before Hermione and Ron were to leave, Hermione cornered Harry in the kitchen. He looked at her in surprise, and saw a familiar expression on her face. She wanted to talk to him alone, and she thought he might not like what she was about to say. He looked wary. "What's the matter?"

She frowned worriedly.

"I don't want you to take this the wrong way, Harry."

He sighed. "Just say it, Hermione. I promise I won't start shouting."

Her lips twitched for a moment. "I can remember a time when you would have done."

"I'm not fifteen any more, Hermione."

"No," she agreed, "And that's sort of what I wanted to say…"

He raised his eyebrows. "You wanted to inform me that I'm not a teenager any more?"

"More _remind_ than _inform_," she said, her frown returning, "No, Harry, just listen for a moment. Do you remember the summer before Fifth Year, when we were all together at Grimmauld Place?"

"Vividly," he said, grimly.

"And do you remember, Harry, an argument that Sirius had with Molly, your first evening there? About whether or not to tell you what was going on? And Molly said… and she shouldn't have said it, because it wasn't fair … but she said that Sirius needed to remember that you weren't James. That he was behaving as though he thought he'd got his best friend back."

Harry was looking startled.

"I'd forgotten that bit," he admitted.

"Yes, well. As I say, it was an unkind thing for her to say, but she was worried about you. And Harry… later, I thought she might have been… right. I don't know whether she was or not – things that have just happened might have made a difference to that – but I just wanted to say…" her voice dropped and she spoke very softly, "that you should be careful not to fall into that trap yourself. Don't allow yourself to imagine that you've got your godfather back."

For a moment, Harry simply looked at her. Then he smiled wearily.

"Hermione… it's okay. Thanks for the warning, but… it's okay. I'm not going to start treating him as my godfather, any more than he is going to think of me as his godson," his smile grew wider for a moment, "That would be a little bit undignified for both of us, I think," he grew serious again, "I saw my godfather fall through a veil in the Department of Mysteries in 1996. And he said goodbye to his godson in Godric's Hollow on the 31st of October 1981."

Hermione looked hard at him, and then nodded.

"All right. Good. But we all need to remember, too, Harry, that while 1996 was thirty one years ago for us, 1981 was _yesterday_ for him. And that although we might have known him as a thirty-six-year-old, just now he is no older than Al and Rosie, and he's just lost his entire world. He's going to need our support."

Harry nodded.

"I know," and then, as Hermione began to turn away, "Hermione?" she turned back, to find him smiling amusedly, "Just out of interest, Hermione, how on earth _do_ you always remember exactly what everyone said like that?"

A smiled played round the corners of her mouth, and her eyes sparkled just a little bit.

"As I told Ron once; I listen, Harry."

**Review, review, review – it will help get me through this time of depression as I deal with exams and deadlines!**

**Oh, and anyone spot the occasion Hermione is referencing in the last line?**


	13. Cherry Blossom

**Disclaimer: I do not own JK Rowling's characters or world**

**A/N: Ok, well the exam is over and the deadline looming, but somehow I've managed to put another chapter together. I hope I haven't lost all of you, by taking so long. **

**This one is more working through issues for the first half, but stick with it, a bit more happens in the second half. **

**Also, apologies for the loss of break markers in the previous chapters. For some reason, the site has decided to delete all my little asterisks that marked a break in the middle of a chapter. I've worked out how to fix it, but it means republishing all my earlier chapters, so I'll work on it after my exam. Sorry to anyone who's just come across this story and has just read all the earlier chapters, you may have been a bit confused.**

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Lily lifted herself on one elbow and looked at the clock. Half past nine. She couldn't really get away with staying in bed any longer. There were things to be faced and she didn't want to face them.

Because in the guest room down the hall was a man she had never expected to see again. She was well aware that her reception had been less than welcoming yesterday afternoon, but she had felt a bit like she was in shock. She still did. There was a frightened, sick feeling in her stomach, and her mind was refusing to accept what had happened.

For eight long months, the thought of what she'd done had haunted her. The memory of his voice, his smile, his laugh, his _touch_. And the knowledge that she had betrayed him. The only comfort that she had had – the only scrap she had clung to – was the feeling that somehow, it hadn't really been _real_. It had just been a stupid joke played by fate. She could not really have made any difference, because it had all been over long before she was born.

And the more time that had gone by, the easier it had been to think like that. To see it as something like a pensieve memory. That was what Aunt Hermione had said she should do; to imagine it like that; something that she had, by a quirk of fate, been able to witness, but could never have changed.

Only now he was here, and he wasn't just a memory in a pensieve, he was a living, breathing person. A person who knew what had happened and remembered what she had done. A person she had betrayed in every way. He had thought she was going to try and help him save his friends, and she had turned her back and now his friends were dead.

He must think she was a horrible person.

She _was _a horrible person.

Feeling like it was the last thing she wanted to do, she pushed back the covers and stumbled out of bed.

There was nobody in the kitchen except her mother, for which she was immensely relieved. She helped herself to a bowl of cereal without speaking. She was aware, without looking, that her mother was observing her carefully.

"Where is everybody?" she asked, before Ginny could say anything.

"Your dad's finishing some report or other that he needs to do before Monday. Al's taken Cuthbert for a walk, and James is somewhere outside. Practicing Quidditch, I think."

Lily rolled her eyes. James couldn't go a day without a bit of flying; he didn't need to practice, he had been practicing all week with the team. 'I need to practice' was simply a handy euphemism for 'I fancy going for a bit of a fly, especially as Al's just offered to take the dog for a walk, Dad has a report to write, Lily hasn't emerged, and Mum's looking round for somebody to do the washing up.'

"And Sirius is still in bed," Ginny finished quietly, "He needed the sleep."

Lily nodded at her cereal, which suddenly tasted like cardboard. That meant he could come in at any moment, and there was no way she could avoid talking to him when there were only three of them in the room. Not that she could avoid talking to him forever, but she could not sit here and chat lightly with him. Neither could she say any of the things that needed to be said; not in front of Mum.

She swallowed her breakfast as hastily as she could, rinsed her bowl out, muttered something about going to see what James was up to, and bolted out of the door. Ginny let her go. She was surer than ever that Lily was holding something back, but even if she wasn't, it was obvious that she was going to find this hard. As hard as Harry was finding it, in a different way. Harry had held the guilt for what had happened to Sirius for a long time. Now Lily was feeling it too. Ginny wouldn't push her; this was something she had to work out on her own. Or with Sirius, because the two of them would have things to say to each other. They were the only people who really knew what had passed last summer.

* * *

The wind was strong today, and the cherry trees in the garden were losing their blossoms. Drifts of white petals swirled and fluttered through the air, some of them settling on her hair and shoulders. For several weeks, the trees had been a mass of pinkish-white, but by this evening, they would be dull green and brown.

Her hands rested on the front rail of the fence as she stood there, her hair loose and blowing around her face, feeling a little unsure what to do. She didn't know where James had gone, but he was nowhere to be seen. She could always try and follow Al, but she didn't know which direction he had gone in, and she probably couldn't catch him up. He walked too fast for her. But she didn't want to go back inside, where…

"Lily."

She jumped violently at her name, and her back grew rigid, but she did not turn. Her mouth had gone dry and her mind blank; she could think of nothing to say.

He was not inside. He was behind her.

"Lily, please…" he broke off, as if he wasn't quite sure what he had been going to ask, "Damn it, Lily, just look at me, will you?"

She owed him that much. She could not keep running and refuse to face him; to face what she had done.

She turned around and looked at him, her face a mask. He looked better than he had done the previous evening. His face had more colour; the shadows under his eyes had faded, and he might have combed his hair; at any rate, he had at least run his fingers through it. And Al's healing spells had finished their work, and his injuries had faded. But he was still thin, and there was still a shadow behind his eyes that had not been there when she had first met him.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, her breath catching in her throat.

He looked almost startled.

"I know…" she forced herself on, "I know what you must think. I know what I did… it was unforgivable," now that she had started, it was difficult to stop; the words came flooding out like water from behind a broken dam, "So I don't expect you to forgive me. After everything… everything that happened. But I'm sorry, Sirius; I didn't want to do it, I…"

"Lily," he said again, stopping her. There was pain on his face, and she could not meet his eyes.

"I know," he said softly, "I know you didn't want to. I'll admit, when Dumbledore told me what had happened, I was angry; angry with him, and with you. I just kept thinking about James and Lily… about how we could have saved them. But… we couldn't have, not really. Dumbledore said that, and he was right, even though I didn't want to believe it. You didn't kill Lily and James; You-Know-Who did. You just had no way of saving them. You did something you didn't want to do, because you _had_ to do it. That's a brave thing to do. Braver than I could have been. And I'm not going to pretend that I like the fact that you took my memories. Not going to pretend it doesn't hurt, that you did that. That I didn't get a choice; you just wiped everything. Not just everything you'd told me, but everything that… that happened between us. But… oh shit, Lily, would you just _look_ at me?"

She couldn't. She couldn't look up and meet the hurt in his eyes. He could tell her that it wasn't her fault; they had all told her that it wasn't her fault. And her head knew that they were right. But she couldn't help _feeling_ that it was her fault. And she could not look at him and see the hollow cheeks and fading bruises; the grief, and the shadow of Azkaban in his eyes. The shadow that she had put on his face.

Then his hand seized her chin, and she started, as the gesture reminded her of the one she had made in the darkness of the hotel room, when it had been him who could not meet her eyes.

"Look at me," he pleaded, and finally, she allowed him to lift her chin, and looked him in the eyes.

And there _was _pain there. There _was _grief – horrible, unhealed grief – and there _was _a shadow.

But there was also forgiveness. And a… sort of desperation. A desperation for her to understand, and accept his forgiveness.

"But if it wasn't for you," he said, continuing what he had started to say, "they'd _still_ be dead. And I'd be in Azkaban, for a crime I never committed. Twelve years of living hell. If you hadn't come. If you hadn't said what you did to Dumbledore. Do you think I could ever – _ever_ – feel anything but grateful for that? You did your best, Lily, and in the end you did the only thing you could. You didn't save Lily and James. But neither did I. I condemned them to death as much as you ever did. I _persuaded_ them… persuaded them to use Peter as a Secret Keeper. It could have been me, and if it had been, they'd still be alive."

His hand dropped from her chin, but she didn't look away. The anguish in his eyes was raw and fresh, and she opened her mouth to say something, but he beat her to it.

"Did you really think I blamed you?" he went on, controlling his voice with an effort, "I'm _here_, Lily. Doesn't that mean something to you? I could have gone anywhere. Any time. But I picked forty seven years in the future. Because that's where you were."

"I… I didn't think of that," she didn't feel ready to deal with the thoughts and feelings pouring through her, so she answered the last part, "You came here because of me?"

"Why else would I have picked such a random time?" his lips curved up slightly, then the half-smile disappeared as he frowned, "Not that… I don't mean… I mean, I didn't follow you thinking… well, assuming anything. I know you have your own life here. I'm not part of it. I'm not going to expect anything from you, just because we… met, last summer. I'll just do my thing, and you'll do yours. I won't get in the way of your life…"

She stared incredulously at him.

"Sirius, you're living in my parents' _house_. I don't think we're going to be able to _avoid_ each other."

"No… I didn't mean that," he hastened to assure her, "I just meant… I can just be part of the background, you know? I mean, I hope we can be… friends. But just because I came here because I already knew you, that doesn't mean you have to… you know, feel responsible for me or anything… Obviously, if you'd rather just never see me… well, that would be a little bit awkward, really," his lips curled at the corner, "Because as you say, I'm living in your parents' house. I'm sorry, Lily. This is the last thing you must want."

He turned away slightly, but her fingers closed around his wrist.

"Sirius."

He turned back, trying to smile at her.

"You know what, Lily? Maybe we should both just stop apologising."

She gave a gulp that was half-way between a laugh and a sob, as he quoted her own words from last summer back at her, and nodded.

"Okay."

He laughed shakily.

"This is weird, isn't it?"

"You could say that. It was weird enough the first time."

She suddenly realised that she was still holding his wrist, and dropped it.

"I… Lily, you know, I came here… came to find you… because you're the only _friend_ I've got left. The others… everybody believes I'm a traitor. Remus… Remus thinks that. And James… oh Merlin… James is gone. Has been gone nearly fifty years. But it was only a few weeks ago. And every time I close my eyes, I see it… I thought it would stop when there weren't any dementors, but it hasn't. I still see them. Dead," his voice broke into a sob, "Oh fuck, Lily, I'm s…"

"Ssh!" she cut him off with a finger on his lips, "It was you who said it this time; no more apologising. And don't you _dare_ apologise for crying for them. Not ever. That's an insult to their memories."

They were standing close together, and as he looked at her, tears in his eyes, she thought for a surreal moment that he was going to kiss her, and she knew she didn't want him to; it was wrong; everything in her recoiled from that thought.

But he didn't. His eyelids came down, and the tears that had gathered in his eyes slid underneath his black eyelashes. And then – because that _did_ feel right – she put her arms around him and pulled him close. He stiffened for a moment, and then relaxed, his larger arms enveloping her, and they clung to each other, in an embrace that held nothing beyond grief and mutual comfort. His shoulders shook as he sobbed, and the tears poured down her face too, as the cherry blossom drifted down around them.

* * *

Harry came out from his study, shirt sleeves rolled up and hair standing on end, as it always did when he had been concentrating hard on something. Ginny was standing by the kitchen window, and he went up behind her and put an arm around her waist. She looked up and smiled.

"All done?"

He nodded.

"Have they emerged yet?"

She too nodded and gestured at the window. He glanced out.

"Oh."

Sirius and Lily were standing by the fence at the bottom of the garden, under the cherry trees, with their arms around each other. For a moment, he stiffened with a sudden awful suspicion, and then realised that he was being stupid. They weren't hugging like _that_. His shoulders were slumped and his head down on her shoulder, and he was obviously crying. She looked like she was trying to comfort him, and that made perfect sense. Lily was the person he knew best in this time, after all, however strange that thought was.

Harry sighed.

"Poor lad."

Ginny looked up at him again, the smallest of smiles on her face.

"Lad? He's your godfather," she pointed out.

"No," Harry shook his head, "He's not. It would probably be better to think of him as my god_son_. He's the same age as Albus. He's what _our_ Sirius' _son_ might be, if he'd had one. Or rather, grandson."

"How are you going to sort all this out? We're going to have to tell people. Too many people will still recognise him for us to keep it quiet. We'll have to inform the Ministry."

Harry nodded.

"I'll take him into work with me tomorrow, and we'll go and talk to the right people. That side of it'll be fine. I mean, I'll have to show them the Time Turner and everything, but once they've seen it, and him, there won't be any doubt about what happened. And he is officially innocent these days. There'll be a lot of red tape, but nothing we can't cope with. Stranger things have happened to the Ministry in the past.

"What I'm worried about is the way the general public is going to react. We won't be able to keep it out of the papers. And even though he was cleared, there are an awful lot of people who still think that Sirius Black's a murderer. And we're going to have your colleagues camping outside the door again."

Ginny chuckled ruefully.

"Well, it's not like we haven't survived media attention before. We'll do it again."

* * *

All the same, they hadn't prepared themselves for the onslaught from the newspapers that came in the next few days.

They had always lived in the media spotlight; it had made front page news when Harry and Ginny had been married; for the birth of each subsequent child, there had been a full length article, in which the story of Harry and Voldemort was retold, each time more wildly inaccurately than the last. Whenever something big happened, whether it was the election of a new Minister for Magic or an incident of Dark Magic, they wanted Harry's views on it, and quite often Ginny's as well. When James had stumbled drunk out of a party at the age of sixteen, and passed out in Hyde Park, that had been news. When Lily had been spotted in a café having coffee with Scorpius Malfoy, that had been news as well.

But it hadn't been like_ this _since the aftermath of the war itself. Sirius, still in shock, seemed a little bemused by it all at first, but as he recovered, he began to take it in his stride, grinning and waving for the cameras, and giving ridiculous quotes to journalists. He cheerfully agreed to go on Lee Jordan's radio programme and give an interview, and proceeded to solemnly tell the public that in fact, he been in stasis for the last fifty years, kept on ice in a locked room in the Ministry, and that the Sirius Black who had 'escaped' in 1993 had been an impostor. It was, he claimed, something that the Ministry had done frequently to prisoners, and for all he knew, still did.

Lee Jordan, who was an old friend of the family, and knew the true story perfectly well, had had a hard time trying not to laugh, but the public hadn't got the joke. Hermione stormed in later that day to tell them that the Department had been receiving letters of complaint all afternoon, and even the odd query from concerned people whose relatives had been in Azkaban and then released, wanting to know whether there was any possibility that the person they were living with was actually another impostor, their real relative being still incarcerated in cold storage. Hermione informed Sirius furiously that if he couldn't refrain from being an idiot, he had better refrain from saying anything at all.

Ron, however, popped in, in the evening, to tell Sirius not to listen to Hermione; that the story had been a stroke of genius, and to suggest a few more rumours that they might like to spread.

Lily, who had departed for work on the Monday and had been at home in her flat, arrived for dinner on Friday evening looking ruffled and annoyed.

"Bloody papers, bloody people, bloody _customers_!" she growled, even as she stepped from the fireplace.

"Long week?" her mother asked, sympathetically.

"Aargh!" Lily put her hands in her hair and pulled theatrically, "Merlin, it's like when we were little, only worse. And somehow, they're got wind of the fact that _I_ went back in time too. They don't know when or what happened, but it was in _Rumours_ this morning."

"Oh, _Rumours_," Ginny said dismissively, "Don't worry, love. They only print a load of rubbish anyway."

"Rubbish that quite a lot of people believe," said Lily wryly. She smiled tiredly.

"Sorry. Don't mind me. It's just that if it was only people staring in the street, I could cope with it. But I have to deal with them in and out of the shop all day. Some of them just stare and whisper at other, but others are more… direct. Roxy's been fending them off for me all afternoon."

Ginny chuckled. Roxanne Weasley, Ginny's brother George's daughter, was the quiet type who kept her head down most of the time. But she was the type who could unobtrusively move mountains without anyone realising she'd done it, and she was very persistent. Ginny could well imagine her quietly and stubbornly defending Lily from curious customers.

"Sorry," Lily said again, sighing, "It's just annoying. I'll start again. Hello Mum; Sirius. Where's Dad?"

"Still at work. He'll be back any minute."

Sirius had said nothing during her diatribe, but eyed her thoughtfully, and a little warily, across the table.

"Have you come for the weekend, or just for dinner?" Ginny asked.

"Oh… um… I don't know. I thought I'd stay until tomorrow anyway."

"Two weekends in a row? That's unusual. Don't you have things to do? People to meet, parties to attend, alcohol to consume, that sort of thing?"

"Mum! I don't have to go out _every_ weekend!"

"No, I know. But I thought it was every other weekend at least, and you were here last week. I only wondered." She smiled teasingly at her daughter.

"Anyone would think you didn't want me here," Lily grumbled.

"Of course we do!" Ginny laughed, "You can entertain Sirius tomorrow night. Your father and I have a rather boring Ministry function to go to."

For a moment, ridiculous laughter almost bubbled up inside Lily at this. She wondered what her mother would say if she knew that Lily and Sirius had slept together. Thank goodness, the idea didn't seem to have occurred to anyone. In fact, Sirius's status as a time traveller seemed to mean that he escaped all suspicion of such things. Lily doubted that her mother would have left her at home alone with any other good-looking young man of Sirius' character.

She choked the laughter down though, and smiled in what she hoped was an ordinary way.

"Right. I suppose I can't abandon him, so it looks like I'll be staying 'til Sunday, then."

"You don't have to!" Sirius said quickly, speaking for the first time, and then he smiled slightly, "I'm a big boy. I can look after myself."

"I know. But I don't mind." Lily threw herself into a chair, "There's nothing special happening this weekend. Freya Robbins is having a party, but to be honest, I'm quite glad to get out of it. More people staring, and asking me if it's true that Sirius Black's back from the dead."

Ginny cast a sharp glance at her daughter. It wasn't like Lily to pass up a party, just to avoid a few questions. She assumed that that meant that the latest boy was history. A shame. This one had lasted some time and Ginny had begun to wonder whether it might be serious. But two weekends home in a row, and deliberately missing her old classmate's party, could only mean that she was avoiding somebody.

Ginny didn't notice Sirius bite his lip, and cast a worried glance at Lily.

Suddenly, they were distracted as the fire glowed green.

"Oh, that'll be…" Ginny began brightly, but broke off. The head of an elderly lady, with a head of iron grey curls and a slightly grim smile, had appeared in the fire. Ginny and Lily both gasped at it.

"Hello," the grim smile widened, "I was just wondering. Are you frightfully busy, or could an old woman invite herself for dinner?"

"Madame Thibodeau!" Ginny gasped, "I didn't even know you were in England! Of course you can come for dinner; come right over! We'd have invited you if we'd known!"

"Thank you! I'll be there in a minute." The head withdrew.

"Who is she?" muttered Sirius to Lily, quickly.

"Old friend…" Lily hissed back, and broke off. The fire glowed again, and this time, the elderly lady, who was perhaps in her late sixties, stepped through. She was short, but very upright, and had an energy and vigour about her, despite her years.

She glanced around the kitchen, her eyes lingering for a moment on Sirius.

"Well, well. Long time no see."

"Yes, indeed," Ginny agreed, "How long has it been…? You're looking very well…"

"Thank you," the woman said, with amusement, "But I wasn't actually talking to you. So, it _is _true," she went on, almost to herself, "Sirius Black, the one-and-only."

Sirius stared blankly at her.

"Er… sorry. Do I know you?"

"Well, I imagine I've changed more than you have. But I'm a little hurt that you don't recognise me at _all_, Black."

A strange expression came into his eyes, as though he were trying to identify something.

"After all," the woman continued, "It's been a long time for _me_. But it's been, what, six months for you?"

"Er… I hate to interrupt," said Ginny faintly, "But… what?"

Madame Thibodeau turned an amused glance on her.

"Didn't Harry ever tell you who I was?"

"Of course," Ginny frowned, "In fact, it wasn't even Harry who told me first, it was my father. When you came back from France after the war. You were a member of the Order," her voice took on the quality of someone reciting something from memory, "but we'd never seen you, because you lived in France, so you'd been recruiting there on Dumbledore's orders. You married a Frenchman shortly after the First War… Oh!" she broke off, suddenly, "You were a member of the _first_ Order too, weren't you? So you two…" she glanced helplessly between Sirius and Madame Thibodeau, "You must have known each other…"

Sirius was staring open-mouthed at the woman now. His lips worked silently for a moment, then he gasped out one word.

"Irvine?"

Madame Thibodeau smiled her grim smile.

"The very same. Hello, Black."

"You were in the Order of the Phoenix together?" Lily demanded.

"More than that, Lily," Madame Thibodeau said, "I told Harry, when I finally first met him, but I think I chose a bad moment. He was overwhelmed by the Battle and everything that had happened, and he was grieving for a lot of people. I think he didn't really take it in. He had so much to deal with; he couldn't process it at first. I always assumed you knew, though.

"I was at school with this lot," she jerked her head at Sirius, "Lily Evans was one of my best friends."

Sirius leaned forward. There was a dazed look on his face, but his eyes were starting to gleam.

"They were practically female Marauders!" he exclaimed, a grin appeared, "Lily Evans and Evie Farrall and Odette Irvine. They were our Nemeses! The only people who could keep up with us!"

"Excuse me?" the woman said, acidly, "We were _nothing_ like you! We didn't spend all our free time either in detention, or picking on Slytherins, and we didn't strut round the school as though we owned it, waiting for everyone to fall at our feet…"

"Oh, come on!" he grinned infectiously, "Remember first year? You gave as good as you got…"

"You dyed our _hair_ blue!"

"Forgotten what you did to us?"

"That was first year. We calmed down after that. Lily was made a Prefect by fifth year."

"So was Remus."

"_Mon Dieu_!" she turned away suddenly, with a groan, "I'm having this argument with a man young enough to be my _grandson_!"

"_Mon Dieu_?" Sirius raised his eyebrows, "Since when do you use Muggle epithets? What happened to 'Merlin's pink woolly socks!'?"

"I married a Muggle-born," she said, dryly, "A French Muggle-born. And when on _earth_ did I use _that_ awful phrase?"

"Summer at the end of fifth year," he said promptly, "Remember? They were your first words when you burst into the room and found me in James' bed… I mean," he looked round suddenly, in horror, realising what he had said, "I don't mean… not like that!"

Lily had dissolved into giggles, though, and after a moment's attempt at dignity, so did Ginny.

Odette Thibodeau, who had once been Odette Irvine, raised her eyebrows at Sirius, her mouth twitching.

"I see you haven't lost your knack for saying exactly the wrong thing, Black."

"Of course I haven't," Sirius retorted, the scarlet that had flooded his cheeks fading, "Would you expect me to, in the six months I've aged since you saw me?"

Suddenly, the fire glowed again, and Odette Thibodeau stepped hastily away from it. A moment later, Harry was stepping out of it.

He looked around the room, and his eyes widened at the sight of the woman.

"Ah…" he said, sounding disconcerted.

"Hello, Harry," she smiled at him, "Nice to see you," She stepped up and kissed him on both cheeks, French style.

"Er… you too, Odette. This is a lovely surprise," although he sounded more surprised than pleased, "I had no idea you were in England…"

"I came over this morning," she said dryly, "When I happened to look at an English paper and saw the front page news."

"Well, we're very pleased to see you," Ginny had recovered herself and spoke firmly.

"Yes," Harry agreed, "I… er… take it you've been introduced then…" He waved a hand at Sirius.

Odette looked amused.

"Harry, you know perfectly well that Sirius Black and I have known each other since we were children."

Harry groaned.

"Of course you have."

"I can't believe this," Sirius was looking at Odette as though he had suddenly noticed her properly for the first time, "Do you have any idea how weird it is to be talking to somebody who was your classmate… your _friend_… only she's now fifty years older than you? I saw you _six months ago_, just before you went off to France on that mission…"

"Actually, you saw me forty-eight_ years_ ago, just before I went off to France on that mission," Odette corrected him, "We're in 2028, Black."

"You're taking this remarkably well, Odette," said Harry, "I'd have thought you'd be knocked for six by Sirius turning up like this… especially as he's the Sirius _you_ remember, not the one I do."

"Yes…" said Odette slowly, "But you see, that's because I'm not surprised. In fact, I've been waiting for him."

* * *

**Aha, well there is an explanation for the randomness of this new twist. I'm currently writing (not posting yet) a companion piece for this, documenting Sirius' school years. I just couldn't resist giving Odette an appearance, and it makes it all a little weirder and more surreal, which is the way this story seems to be going.**

**This other story will appear some time, and will heavily feature the Marauders, as well as Lily, Odette, and their third friend Evie. And yes, it will include the phrase 'Merlin's pink woolly socks!' and some blue hair dying.**

**Review button is right there. Please please review, I'm so stressed with work and it will cheer me up. Last time, I offered brownies to anyone who reviewed, and they suddenly started to come in. The offer still stands, so all the many people who have added this to alerts, PLEASE leave me a review! Also new people. I will love you forever!  
**


	14. I Never Thought It Was You

**Disclaimer: I do not own JK Rowling's characters or world**

**A/N: Well, now the dissertation is done too (although I never want to go through 48 hours like the ones before the deadline again) and although I have another exam next week, I'm taking the time to try and update where I can. Sorry there's been a wait.**

**This chapter is for arwenjanelilylyra, my most faithful of reviewers (and an awesome writer herself), to make up for her shitty day.**

_At the end of the last chapter:_

"_You're taking this remarkably well, Odette," said Harry, "I'd have thought you'd be knocked for six by Sirius turning up like this… especially as he's the Sirius you remember, not the one I do."_

"_Yes…" said Odette slowly, "But you see, that's because I'm not surprised. In fact, I've been waiting for him."_

_

* * *

_

She looked slowly round the room at four astonished faces.

"_Waiting_ for him?" Harry jerked out at last.

"Yes," she walked over to Sirius, and stood in front of him. He looked at her and saw a lined face surrounded by grey hair. But she still had freckles across the bridge of her nose, and she still had the same round brown eyes, and those, and the determined set of the jaw, made him realise that this was indeed the same Odette Irvine he had known.

"Just for the record, Black," her voice was tight with some sort of emotion and her eyes were blazing, and he heard the twenty-one-year old still in her voice, "I never believed it. I never thought you'd done it, not for one moment…"

Sirius could only gape at her.

"Y… you didn't?"

"No," she sighed and her shoulders slumped, the spark going out of her, "I was in France when it happened. I wasn't always in touch with people regularly. I was working undercover. By the time I heard, and came back to England, it was all over. Lily and James were dead, Peter was… gone, and you'd been taken off to Azkaban. I went to see Evie…"

"She thought I'd done it," Sirius said flatly.

"Yes, she did. You know… how Evie was. And why. She'd become obsessed with catching Death Eaters. It was her one meaning in life. They said it was you, and she had to believe them, because if it wasn't, then the real culprit was still out there, and she couldn't cope with that thought. So I gave up on her and went to Remus Lupin."

"He thought I was guilty too." Sirius' voice cracked slightly.

Odette shook her head.

"He didn't know what to believe, poor Remus. It was different for me; I'd been out of it, in France. But you'd all been here, in the middle of it all, people being killed off left, right and centre. You all knew there was a traitor, and nobody had known who it was. There was fear and mistrust and suspicion everywhere. And of course, they all _knew_, for a fact – or at least, they thought they did – that you had been the Secret Keeper. Remus didn't want to believe it, but he didn't see how it could be anyone else."

"It was a bad time," Sirius admitted, "A horrible time. We didn't know who it was, but we knew it was somebody close to us. There was no _likely_ suspect, so it had to be somebody unlikely. Nobody trusted anyone else. Except James, of course, who trusted everybody…"

"Yes, he would," Odette's voice was amused, but tinged with sadness.

"I had a conversation with him, you know," said Sirius, "just a few months ago… I mean, a few months before… Well, anyway, we were talking about who it could be. I'd been round and round it in my head, weighing up all the arguments, and I ran through the list of people it could possibly be. Every single one of them, James said 'No, can't possibly be them.' It had to be one of them, but he wouldn't accept it, the stubborn git."

Odette chuckled, sadly.

"That sounds like James. But anyway, you can see why Remus was forced to believe it. He fought against it, but he couldn't see any other possibility. When I found him, he was drowning his sorrows in a bottle, and had been for a few days, by the look of him and his house. So I put him to bed, poured all the alcohol I could find down the sink, and went to see Dumbledore," she smiled slightly, remembering, "I was furious. I don't think I'd ever shouted at Dumbledore before, and I certainly never did again. I told him that if you'd betrayed James and Lily, I was a… what did I say again? A one-eyed, two-legged Hippogriff, I think. I told him he had to do something. And so he told me that he'd already done something…"

"He _told _you?" Harry broke in, incredulously, "So… all this time… you knew?"

"'Fraid so," Odette said apologetically, "At least… I thought I knew. I was never entirely sure. Dumbledore had no way of knowing if the plan had worked, and where Black had ended up. He said 'around fifty years,' but that was as close as I knew, and for all I knew, it had all gone pear-shaped anyway. And when he appeared again twelve years later, he refused to tell me anything," indignation tinged her voice, "And I came all the way from France to see him, as well, while he was hiding out at Remus'.

"But I knew it had to have worked to some extent, or there wouldn't have _been _anything to refuse to tell me, if you get my drift. He certainly hadn't been in Azkaban for twelve years. Nobody could come out of there that sane… although, obviously, 'sane' is a relative term when applied to Sirius Black…"

Sirius simply grinned at this.

"Well… Now, when I go back, I'll know I'm not allowed to tell you anything. That'll be fun. I _love_ knowing things you don't."

"I'm sure you do. It's the novelty value of the experience, I suppose," she said, without missing a beat.

"So… you've just been sitting here waiting for me to turn up?" Sirius asked. She raised one eyebrow.

"I wouldn't say that, Black. My entire life hasn't revolved around the anticipation of seeing you again. But I have been wondering, for the last few years, whether you really would, or whether it was all some ridiculous mistake. The ridiculous mistake seemed rather likelier…

"But then, of course, when I heard about Lily's little incident last summer, I knew. I realised then who the girl Dumbledore told me about must have been, and suddenly, the whole thing was real again. And since then, yes, I have been rather expecting you," her eyes drifted thoughtfully round the room, dwelling on Harry, but finally coming to rest on Lily, "This must be rather odd for you all."

Lily met the old woman's gaze with slight discomfort. There was an oddly knowing look in her eyes, and she wondered uneasily how much Odette Thibodeau had guessed.

"I think, to be honest," Sirius was saying, "the oddest part is seeing _you_. I mean, I don't even know what to call you. You aren't Irvine any more, and that's the only name I ever used for you. And no offence, I know you're a lot older than me now, and you've had years to grow up, so you're not really the same person… but I _can't_ call you Madame… whatever it was. I refuse to address somebody I've seen as drunk as I've seen you as 'Madame.' Of course, I could always use James' old name for you… What did he call you again?" He grinned cheekily at her.

Odette glared at him.

"Dear Merlin, I'd forgotten how annoying you were, Black. It seems that time softens your memory of people. Or perhaps I just didn't mind so much when I was young and stupid too," she turned to Harry and Ginny, "I feel I ought to warn you. You've never met the twenty-one-year-old Black. You're in for a harrowing time; he causes havoc wherever he goes. _I_ wouldn't be responsible for him for anything," she turned back to Sirius, "Why don't you just call me Odette, Black? Probably time we moved on to first names, don't you think?"

He grinned.

"All right. But in that case, no more 'Black.' And I'll forget, you know. You may have grey hair and wrinkles, but you'll always be Irvine to me."

Odette stayed for dinner, and Lily was relieved. Madame Thibodeau was a talkative woman, and apparently not at all thrown by sitting at a dinner table with an old classmate who was now considerably less than half her age. It took the pressure off Lily, who had always found the old lady pleasant and entertaining company, and found herself enjoying the meal. Sirius kept looking at Odette with a bemused and wondering expression at first, but as he got used to it, they seemed to slip back to the days when they had been the same age; school mates, rivals apparently, and fellow members of the Order of the Pheonix.

They reminisced about the old days (not so old for Sirius) and although a flicker of pain passed through the young man's face every time James' name was mentioned, and they avoided even referring to Peter Pettigrew, it seemed to cheer him up more than anything else had. Lily thought that perhaps it was the fact that Odette had said she had not believed him guilty; they didn't refer to it again, but Lily was sure it had meant a lot to him.

She was also sure that, somehow, Odette Thibodeau knew about her and Sirius. Not that there was any 'her and Sirius' to know about, of course. But the old woman's eyes slid quite frequently from one of them to the other, with a look that was slightly amused and slightly anxious.

After dinner, her suspicions were confirmed.

Madame Thibodeau made an excuse to follow her when she took the dishes through to the kitchen. Odette Thibodeau had never been one to beat about the bush.

"What's the business between you and Sirius Black?" she asked bluntly.

Lily forced her face into casual indifference.

"Nothing. I mean, we're friends, I suppose. But we hardly know each other, really…"

"Yes, that's what I'm afraid of," Odette said dryly, "You see, _I_ know Sirius Black rather well. _This_ Sirius Black, not the man in his thirties that your parents knew. And I've seen the way he looks at you."

This time, Lily's attempt to look indifferent failed utterly. Colour flooded her face.

"Wh… what do you mean? He doesn't look at me."

"Oh, but he does. And last summer, you spent a couple of days together, didn't you? And the night in between of course."

Her voice was so casual, that Lily might have imagined her words to be entirely innocent, if it hadn't been for a certain look in her eyes. Lily could think of nothing to say. She had no idea how this old woman had guessed. That was one part she had never even hinted at to any of her family. In fact, she had let them believe that she and Sirius had taken only one day getting to Hogwarts, and that she had in fact been in the past a full day less than she had actually been. So how did Odette Thibodeau know about that extra day?

Odette seemed to read her mind, and chuckled dryly.

"You see, you told your parents and everybody else that you arrived in the very early hours of the 21st of November, 1980, and that you spent the remainder of that night at Black's' flat in London, with him, Lily and James. But you see _I_ know, because Dumbledore told me, and I have an unfortunate tendency to remember that kind of thing, that you went to see Dumbledore on the 22nd. So where did you spend the _next _night, Lily?"

"We stayed in a hotel," Lily admitted, "But…"

"But nothing. I _know_ Sirius Black. And if he spent the night in a hotel with a girl as pretty as you without trying it on, then I'm a flea-ridden flobberworm."

Lily flushed again. It wasn't quite fair, what this woman was saying. Because Sirius _wouldn't_ have tried it on, unless she had crossed over to his side of the bed, and said the things she had said. He had _wanted _to, but he would have resisted. Wouldn't he?

"Well, I think I've got my answer," said Odette, "Although I had it already, really. I just wanted to say… be careful, Lily."

"Careful?" Lily jerked out, painfully embarrassed. This woman was old enough to be her grandmother, for goodness' sake!

"Yes. Far be it from me to tell you what to do. And Black's a good person, deep down. He's brave and loyal and kind-hearted, for all he can be an arrogant idiot. But there are a couple of things you should know. The first is that he has a libido the size of Africa. The second is that Sirius Black doesn't play for keeps."

For a moment, they looked at each other.

"I know," said Lily simply, at last, "I know that. I don't mind. We spent a night together, but it didn't mean anything. Because I don't play for keeps either, Madame Thibodeau."

Odette looked thoughtfully at the girl.

"Oh, I see. It's like that, is it? I'm not sure, you know, that he's quite as convinced as you that it meant nothing. He's still attracted to you, you know."

"I daresay he is," Lily smiled slightly, "But as you said yourself, he doesn't want a relationship."

"I never said that. He can't _do_ relationships. That doesn't mean he never wants them. He just can't usually keep them up for more than a few weeks before he gets bored. Of course, I've always thought he'd find an exception some day… but it hasn't happened so far."

Lily laughed.

"You know, Madame Thibodeau…"

"Odette…"

"Odette. You've just described me, as well as Sirius. I'm not the type to get their heart broken. I'm not going to pretend it isn't a bit complicated. I mean, I never expected to see him again. But neither of us ever thought what happened was anything serious. And we both know that starting something now would be a really bad idea. It was just this stupid thing that happened one night. It didn't mean anything."

She smiled reassuringly at the woman, and walked past out of the kitchen.

For a moment, Odette did not follow her, but looked thoughtfully after her, a strange expression on her face.

* * *

She was remembering an afternoon long ago.

"_Sirius has broken up with Tina, did you know?" Lily had said absently._

_Odette had laughed._

"_Well, not like I didn't see that one coming. It's been falling apart for a while now. She wants more than Black could ever give her."_

"_I wonder if Sirius'll ever find somebody he doesn't get bored with. I hope he does; I think it would be good for him."_

_Odette had laughed again._

"_You know what I think? I think that when Black does fall, he'll fall _hard_. And I think it'll be for somebody like him. He doesn't want a girl with romantic ideals, who wants him to settle down and be a 'proper' boyfriend; who wants to change him somehow, and make him into something he isn't. What he wants is a girl who doesn't take things like that too seriously; who's as casual about relationships as he is, and just wants to have a laugh. And the ironic thing'll be that he _won't_ just want to have a laugh any more. And the one girl he actually wants'll be the one he can't have."_

Interesting.

* * *

Lily woke early the next morning, and slipped downstairs. It was Saturday, and her parents would be making the most of the extra sleeping time. A wriggling, whining Cuthbert greeted her ecstatically, and she smiled to herself.

"Okay, boy. I'll take you out in a minute."

She grabbed a slice of bread, put some peanut butter on it, and lifted the lead off its hook.

"Come on then, Cuddy."

She clipped the lead on, and left the house. She shivered slightly. You could tell it was only April at this time of the morning, before the sun was properly up. Should she go back for a coat? No, she'd warm up, walking.

She ate the bread with one hand, and tried to control Cuthbert's excitement with the other.

"Pack it in, you crazy animal," she muttered, "It can't be that exciting."

The house was on the edge of town, and she didn't have far to walk before reaching fields. Then she bent down and unclipped the lead.

"All right. Off you go."

He was off like a bullet from a gun, racing across the field, ears flapping joyfully.

And at that moment, another dog appeared from behind her, and loped across the field. Cuthbert spotted it and doubled back, making excitedly for the other dog at top speed, yapping in a high-pitched way.

For a single second, Lily tensed, worried that there might be a fight; the dog was much larger that Cuthbert, and although Cuthbert would never initiate a fight, who knew…? Then she realised what she had missed, and relaxed, embarrassed at her moment of idiocy.

She had never seen a dog with eyes that colour. But those precise eyes had smiled across the dinner table at her last night.

Laughing, she watched the two dogs meet. Cuthbert, still only a puppy really, was being subservient as well as playful, crouching to the ground in front of the larger dog, wagging his tail at a great speed and wriggling gleefully at this sudden appearance of a playmate. Although he hadn't greeting the other dog like a stranger, and Lily wondered if he recognised him. But then, Sirius had been here nearly a week; perhaps Cuthbert had already met his dog form.

And then they both took off across the field, tails waving, chasing each other backwards and forwards. Lily shook her head, grinning widely.

"Hey… Sirius!" she shouted, when they got close enough to her. He veered off, and galloped up to her, tongue lolling out, and obviously grinning back.

For a moment, they stood and stared at each other.

"I can't talk to you like that," Lily folded her arms over her chest and tried to glare at him, "Change back."

Cuthbert, missing his playmate, came suddenly shooting over like a large hairy cannonball, crashing straight into Sirius and sending them both rolling on the ground. Lily burst into giggles, and Sirius gave her a mischievous glance, and shot off again. Seeing no help for it, she followed them. By the time she caught up with them on the other side of the field, they had found a large stick, and were playing a violent game of tug-of-war with it, accompanied by much playful growling.

She shook her head in disbelief and stood by to watch. The stick broke in half, giving Cuthbert by far the bigger half. Triumphantly, the smaller dog dashed up to Lily, brandishing the stick in his mouth, shaking it in his mouth like a rat, and whacking her legs with it. She yelped and jumped sideways, and Sirius pounced on the smaller dog, tumbling him to the ground, and they were off again.

It was a more entertaining walk than it might otherwise have been, but she was a little exasperated by Sirius' insistence on staying in his dog form. Why had he followed her if he didn't even want to talk to her?

It wasn't until they were walking back that she heard the two dogs come racing up behind her, and then a footstep and a chuckle at her elbow. She looked round and looked at the young man now walking beside her. He was tousled and out of breath and grinning at her. She raised an eyebrow, swallowing laughter.

"Have fun, did you?"

He nodded and pushed his hair out of his eyes.

"Bloody hell, I'm out of shape though."

"Well, you've spent however many weeks sitting in a cell," she pointed out, and then bit her lip as he flinched.

"Five weeks, I reckon," he said quietly, "I worked it out. It was about five weeks. Felt like years."

She nodded, not sure what to say.

"What did Irv… Odette say to you in the kitchen last night?" he said abruptly. Lily was unpleasantly surprised, and then realised that if Odette knew Sirius well, Sirius also knew her quite well too.

"Um… not much," she stalled, wishing she wasn't such a terrible liar.

"It was about me, wasn't it?"

"What makes you think that?" she countered.

He looked at her in an amused way.

"What else would it have been about?"

Lily arched her eyebrows.

"Well, sometimes people do talk about other things, Sirius…"

"Lily…"

"Fine. If you really have to know, she warned me not to get emotionally tangled up with you."

There was silence for a moment.

"Was there… any risk of that?" he asked eventually, his voice a little tense.

She laughed.

"No, Sirius. Don't worry. I told her that we'd sorted it all out and got it straight…"

"Have we?"

She stared at him, startled.

"Well… yes. We sorted it out last summer… I mean, in November '81… the morning after it happened. Remember?"

"Yeah, 'course. But things have changed a bit since then, haven't they?"

"I suppose… but _that_ hasn't changed."

"No," he agreed lightly, "I suppose not. So long as we're both straight about it. Did you reassure her, d'you think?"

"I think so," she smiled, deciding not to mention the fact that Odette had said that Sirius had been looking at her, "So… what have you been doing all week? Other than annoying Aunt Hermione by spreading rumours on the radio…"

He grinned.

"Fending off journalists, mostly. I can't believe how interested in this they are!"

"Well, you were a war hero…"

"Yes, so I've been told," Sirius said wryly, "Just a shame I can't remember it. Though did you notice they seem to have given up this morning? There wasn't anyone outside at all. I'd changed into a dog before leaving the house, as well, but I needn't have bothered. Maybe my radio interview satisfied them."

"Maybe," she agreed, "I hope so. I've been fending them off as well."

"Yes," his face grew serious, "Look, Lily, I'm sorry about all this…"

"It's hardly your fault," she said, rolling her eyes.

"Yes, it is," he corrected her "If I hadn't come, it wouldn't be happening. I promised you I wouldn't interfere with your life, and now…"

"It is interfering," she finished for him with a wry smile, "But it's okay, Sirius. I can deal with it."

"Really?"

"Yes, really. I've dealt with plenty before. When I was a kid, I had to deal with being Harry Potter's daughter. And then I had to deal with being James and Al's little sister, when I was never going to be as much of a troublemaker as Jamie, or as clever as Al. I had to deal with a bunch of stupid rumours about me and Scorpius Malfoy going round school in my fourth year. I had to deal with the fact that a lot of people called me unpleasant names because I wasn't serious about relationships. I had to deal with photos getting into the papers every time I got drunk at a party. I got through it all. I can get through this too. And you know, Sirius… I'm actually glad you came."

"You are?" he sounded really surprised this time.

"Of course I am. What, you think I'd rather you spent twelve years in Azkaban? What do you think I was trying to do, when I was in your time? What do you think I was doing, telling Dumbledore you were innocent? I never though that _this_ would be what he thought of… but I _wanted_ to stop it happening. And if this is the only way, I'm glad you're here.

And, actually, it's quite nice to see you again. I missed you, strange though it may seem."

He laughed suddenly.

"Well, thanks. I would say I missed you too. But I didn't remember anything about you, so it wouldn't be true."

There was a sudden buzzing sound in her pocket, and she fished out a small red disc.

"What's that?" Sirius sounded slightly alarmed, "You're not going to send us flying around in time again, are you?"

"No," she grinned, "This is a Communicator. They weren't around in your time. They're modelled on Muggle mobile phones, and those were only just being invented in the 70s and 80s, even if the Wizarding World had ever taken any notice of Muggle technology in those days. But they're basically a magical way of communicating with your friends. I think they were named by a Muggle-born with a sense of humour, because the name comes from some old science fiction TV series."

She glanced down at the thing, which was still buzzing in her hand.

"You realise I have no idea what you just said, don't you?" Sirius said with amusement, "A sy… what?"

"Science fiction TV series. Never mind," Lily said absently. She had taken her wand out, and pressed the end of it to the disc. It glowed pink for a moment, and then words appeared on it.

Sirius scoffed.

"Not as good as our old two way mirror. You can't see the other person."

"No. But you can communicate with more than one person using the same device. And they don't have to be looking at it at the time."

"Who's the message from?" he demanded.

"My cousin Rose."

Lily read the message, a smile appearing on her face, although she rolled her eyes.

"Lil," it said, "Please tell me what's going on. The story Mum and Dad told me would have made me think they both needed a trip to St Mungo's, if I hadn't just read the whole thing in the paper. We're dying of curiousity here, and Jamie's being infuriating. WHEN CAN WE MEET HIM? Mum just keeps saying he needs space, and Dad refuses to disagree with her as usual, so I've given up on them. But I've just spoken to Molly, and she said you'd gone home for the weekend. If he can cope with you (and about a hundred journalists, and a radio interview…) can't he cope with us? Do something about it, please Lily, and I'll love you forever. Love, Rose."

Lily giggled. If cool, sarcastic Rose was resorting to such desperate pleading, she must be in a bad way indeed. She was tempted to tease, but James had been doing that already by the sound of it, and there was only so far you could push Rosie before she got dangerous.

She looked up at Sirius, her eyes dancing.

"Rose wants to meet you. Apparently, Aunt Hermione's been telling them you're not ready for visitors yet."

Sirius grinned.

"Of course she wants to meet me. She's probably heard of my infamous good looks…"

The trouble was, Lily thought, even as she shook her head at him and told him that Rose had a boyfriend, that it was true. Everybody _did_ know that Sirius Black had been very good-looking. And that probably _was _one of the reasons Rose wanted to meet him, although she'd never admit it.

"Hey!" an idea seemed to have struck Sirius, "You could invite her over tonight!"

Lily looked unconvinced. It was an appealing idea; the thought of it just being the two of them all evening was slightly nerve-racking, although she wasn't sure why that should be. And Rose was a reassuring person to have in an awkward social situation. But…

"I'm not sure. She'd probably bring a bunch of the others with her. She said 'we…' and I don't know who she meant. But certainly Molly, and quite probably Roxy and Hugo too, and maybe even Lucy. She'd probably bring half her friends as well, and Louis and Dominique are always possibilities, too, and you really _don't_ want Dom to get her teeth into this story. She writes a gossip column. And I'm not sure Mum and Dad would be very happy about the whole crowd turning up for dinner."

"But your parents are going out tonight."

"Sirius…"

"Oh, come on, Lily," he pleaded shamelessly, "I've been stuck here for a whole week… not that it's not great here, but… there's not much going on. And before that, as you pointed out earlier, I was sitting in a cell for weeks. I need some fun _some_time!"

"And you think a visit from my cousins would provide that," Lily said, amused.

He shrugged.

"I don't know. If they're all like you, it would."

She blinked, feeling a slight warmth at the compliment. He thought she was fun? Coming from Sirius Black, that was quite a compliment. But all the same, was it really a reason to feel quite so happy suddenly?

"Well…" she said slowly, "I suppose we could. I don't suppose Mum and Dad'll really mind, if I tell Rosie not to bring _too_ many people."

* * *

"Of course," Ginny said, smiling, when Lily asked if it was okay for her to invite Rose round that evening, "I was expecting to see one or two of them before now, to be honest. If Hermione's been holding them off, that explains it."

So Lily sent a message, omitting to tell Rose that her parents were going to be out, thinking that if she didn't know that, she might be less inclined to invite the whole family and most of their old schoolmates. Because if that happened, Lily wasn't sure how much of the house her parents would come back to.

Lily wasn't used to being the responsible one, but she was pretty sure that if anything happened, she would be the one getting the blame.

* * *

**Again, sorry it's been a while since I updated. I really hope you haven't all lost interest. Please tell me how you think it's going. I'm aware that there hasn't been much action in the last couple of chapters, but the new direction of the story requires some setting up. Has it just lost momentum since Sirius arrived in the future? What do people want to see? I'm considering a new, crazy plot twist, but I'm not sure if it would be too much.**

**Please review and let me know! Love and brownies for anyone who does!  
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	15. Memories and Mistakes

**Disclaimer: I do not own JK Rowling's characters or world**

**A/N: Thanks to arwenjanelilylyra, kp pickles and HPFanFicLuvr for the latest reviews. **

**As usual, love and virtual brownies for anyone who reviews. Let's see if we can get it up to 50, people!**

**This is a pretty long chapter, so hopefully it's worth the little wait. I was going to split it, but decided not to in the end, because it's not **_**that **_**long, and it would have meant that the first one was just a filler. But hopefully I'm going to surprise you again, because I know how much you love my surprises ;-)**

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He wasn't quite sure what had made him suggest that they invite Lily's cousin over that night. Suddenly, the idea of a whole evening spent with Lily had been a bit daunting. Which was strange, because he liked spending time with her, and they had spent the whole evening together in that hotel, and had had a good time, even before they had got to the sex.

But she had made it quite clear that she wasn't remotely interested in him, and he wasn't sure whether that meant she didn't want to flirt either. Which left him feeling a bit wrong-footed, and not quite knowing how to react to her. He had to admit to himself that he hadn't liked it very much when she had said, so straight-forwardly, that there was no risk of them getting involved; had laughed at the very idea. He wasn't altogether used to girls reacting that way to him. There had been Lily Evans and Irv… Odette, of course, but they were special cases. It had hurt his pride a little (He told himself that that was all it had hurt. That didn't quite account for the way his heart had sung when she said that she had missed him).

So having the odd extra person around had seemed like a good idea. Shame this Rose was apparently off the market. Not that he anticipated anything serious with her, but if Lily wasn't having any of it, he might as well have a little bit of fun.

She arrived shortly before Harry and Ginny left, and she had brought Molly with her. Molly was looking apologetic for turning up without an invitation, but Harry and Ginny told her not to be silly. In fact, they looked rather relieved, because, Sirius knew, Molly was known for being the sensible one.

Then the two girls turned to Sirius, their faces eager and interested. Harry performed the introductions, and they exchanged the usual polite greetings.

They made no secret of their examination of him, so he didn't feel the need to hide his scrutiny of them.

Rose was not at all what he had expected. In fact, he wasn't sure he'd ever met a girl quite like her, even Odette in her wilder phases. Rose's hair was the same colour as Lily's, but less sleek and straight. She wore it long at the back, but with the front strip at one side cut close to her head. She had several piercings in each ear, one through her nose, and one in her eyebrow, through which she wore a black ring. She was wearing two vest tops; the bottom one was purple, and the top one bright green, khaki shorts, a black hooded jacket with some sort of large green tree printed on the back, and large black boots with red and orange striped laces. A tattoo of some sort peeped out from under the straps of the tops, at the front, and she was tall for a girl. The overall effect was slightly intimidating.

Molly couldn't have more different, being rather short, slightly plump, and pretty in a quiet sort of way. Her hair was curly, and, whilst still red, was more of a dark auburn than either of her cousins'. Her eyes, though, were sharp and shrewd and determined.

Sirius got the distinct impression that neither of these girls were people you really wanted to get on the wrong side of.

"Well, we'd better get going," Ginny said cheerfully, "Behave yourselves, you lot. Molly, you'd better keep them all in line."

"Oh," Rose sounded surprised, "You're going out?"

"Well, you didn't think we were dressed up like this because you were coming to dinner, did you Rosie?" said Harry, amused, glancing down at his dress robes, "It's not really that much of an occasion, you know."

She grinned.

"Hadn't even thought about it. But you didn't tell me that, Lily," she glanced quickly at her cousin, a quizzical look on her face.

"Sorry," said Lily vaguely, "I must have forgotten to mention it."

"We're going to be late. We really must go," Ginny reminded her husband, and she and Harry soon departed via the floo network.

Rose looked at Lily.

"Well. You didn't mention we'd have the house to ourselves," she grinned, "Merlin, you're not cooking dinner, are you, Lily? We'll all be poisoned!"

"I'm a good cook!" protested Lily, "But actually, I'm sure you can all help."

Rose eyed Sirius with interest.

"Well, I have to say, you don't look quite as delicate as Mum would have had us believe."

Sirius grinned.

"Oh, I'm very delicate," he said seriously, "I may not look it, but I can't socialise for more than half an hour without having to go and sit in a darkened room."

"Really?" Molly asked, with concern.

"No," put in Lily, exasperatedly, "Don't be stupid, Molly. He's not an invalid."

She pulled open the kitchen cupboard.

"You're still not eating meat, are you, Rose?"

"You make it sound like a temporary thing," grumbled Rose, "It isn't going to change. No matter what Dad says on the subject."

Lily pulled a packet of red lentils out of the cupboard.

"I suppose that means I have to use vegetable stock, as well, doesn't it?"

"We're eating _lentils_?" Sirius wrinkled his nose.

Lily rolled her eyes, and Molly chuckled.

"Wait till you taste what Lily does with them."

Lily proved her flatmate right, and validated her statement that she was a good cook by serving a fragrant rice, lentil and carrot loaf, with maple roasted carrots, and garlic and parsley fried runner beans, and she and Rose insisted that Sirius acknowledge the merits of lentils as a foodstuff. By the time they had eaten, and argued about who was going to do the washing up (Molly finished the argument by doing it herself), they were all comfortable with each other, although Lily was amused by her cousins' response to Sirius' shameless flirting.

Molly didn't even notice that she was being flirted with, and answered in deadly seriousness. Rose, on the other hand, knew perfectly well what he was up to, and frustrated him no end by letting it all fall on stony ground. Lilt suspected that she was winding him up deliberately. But although Rosie might pretend to be casual about her relationship, she utterly refused even to flirt with anyone else. It was an attitude Lily couldn't really understand; flirting was harmless, after all.

She felt a little bit glad that they hadn't brought Dominique with them, though. Dom would come on to any male, and she'd have a field day with Sirius, for all she was nearly twenty six to his twenty two. Then Lily wondered why Dom _not _being here should make her feel glad.

The dishes were hardly off the table, though, when there was a pop in the front room and the door to the dining room was flung open to reveal James Potter standing and grinning at them. The grin faded to a look of indignation as he looked around.

"Hey, nobody told me you lot were going to be here tonight. Why wasn't I invited? And where are Mum and Dad?"

"At a Ministry Function," Lily answered the last question, with a feeling that perhaps something was going to go wrong after all. It usually did, shortly after James turned up.

"What?" James stared at her, "Mum and Dad are out for evening, you get Rose and Moll round, and you even don't bother telling me? Bloody wankers, the lot of you. And here you are, sitting eating _dinner_. How civilised and dull."

"We're not sixteen any more, James," Rose remarked, "Although you'd sometimes wonder, the way you act. We don't need to take advantage of parents being out to have a wild party. You can have a party in your own flat, any time you like."

"And talking of parties, why aren't you at Freya's?" Lily asked her brother, and then looked at Rose, "In fact, why aren't _you_ there? I never thought of that when I invited you round."

"Well, there are more interesting things," Rose grinned at Sirius, "Parties happen all the time, but it's not every day you get to meet your uncle's dead godfather."

"The real question is, Lil," James put in, "Why aren't _you_ there? Freya was your year, after all. You know her much better than any of the rest of us do. You could be there, raving it up with all your friends. Not to mention Nick Hartley. But instead, you're having what appears to be a middle-aged dinner party. What happened to poor old Nick?"

"Not that it's any of your bloody business," Lily said shortly, "But we broke up."

"Excellent," James looked pleased, "That's what I like to hear. He was an idiot."

"He's your friend," Rose pointed out.

"Doesn't stop him being an idiot. Seriously, though. What _are_ you all doing? Is this all that's happening for the whole evening? I'd have brought some alcohol and a few more people if I'd known."

"Oh, okay," Rose remarked, apparently to herself, "We clearly _are_ still sixteen, and we _do_ need to descend on any parentless house with alcohol," she looked at James, "If you want to drink, why not go to Freya's? Or do it in your own place? That way, your parents won't come in at midnight and find you."

"_Because_," James said, as if he was speaking to an idiot, "Freya's is going to be lame. The girl doesn't know how to throw a party, and she's invited a bunch of idiots. And if I drink in my flat, that means I'd be drinking by myself, which is a little bit pathetic, really. Anyway, it's fun to pretend to be sixteen again sometimes. Remember those parties we used to throw in the Common Room? And that time in my sixth year, when we had a party in your house…? That was a good one!"

"Yeah, it was great… especially when Mum came home next day," Rose agreed, sarcastically.

"Nobody ever ended up in the hospital wing after your Gryffindor parties, though, did they?" Lily said, with a laughing glance at Sirius.

"Well, no, I don't think so…" said James, sounding puzzled.

"You obviously weren't doing the thing properly, then," Sirius said, with a grin, leaning back in his chair, hands clasped behind his head.

James raised his eyebrows.

"And you were, you mean?"

"Ours were pretty messy," Sirius acknowledged, "We used to get firewhisky and mead and stuff up from Hogsmeade, through the secret passages."

James grinned. "So did we."

"How many passages did you find?" Sirius asked, interestedly.

"As many as you did," James told him, "You made a map of them, remember?"

Sirius gaped at him.

"You've got the Marauder's Map? But… but how? Filch took it… we never got it back. Merlin, we searched for it over and over again, but we always got caught before we got it. James got detention for a month once, for ransacking Filch's office."

"Well, you can't have been very good at searching," James said with a grin, "According to Uncle George, him and Uncle Fred just opened a drawer one day and found it. They kept it a few years, before giving it to Dad."

"How did they work out how to use it?" Sirius demanded.

James frowned.

"I… don't know, actually. That is a bit weird. I mean, how would they get the exact words…?"

"Maybe Remus Lupin told them?" suggested Rose.

"I don't think they knew Remus Lupin then, did they?" countered James, "But anyway, they did work it out. And then they handed it on to Dad…"

"They knew who'd made it, then?" Sirius asked, eagerly.

"I don't think they did, actually," Lily put in, "I think it was coincidence. But anyway, Dad found out soon enough, from Remus."

"And then he gave it to you, did he?" Sirius sounded approving.

"Well…" James grinned, "Not exactly. I might have slipped it out of his desk one day. He didn't notice, either, for four years. Then he took it back, but I knew all the passages by then anyway."

Sirius was looking pleased.

"I'm glad Harry got the map. And you. We thought it was lost forever. The last thing we expected was that James' son would end up with it. That's great. James… I wish James could have known that." He finished quietly. There was a short, sympathetic silence.

"He might give it back to you," James suggested eventually, unspoken sympathy in his voice, "He'd never give it to me, or to Teddy, but I don't see how he could refuse to give it to one of the original makers. I mean, it's _yours_."

Sirius shook his head.

"I don't want it," he said, trying and failing to sound casual, "It… there were four of us then. It's got all of our names on it. Our Marauder names. Only, one of us doesn't deserve to be called a Marauder any more. I don't think I could stand to see _his_ name on there, alongside the rest of us."

He looked up and tried to smile.

"I tell you what I _would_ like back, though I doubt it's still around. Forty seven years is a long time."

The others looked at each other, although Lily thought she might have a suspicion as to what he was going to say.

"What's that?" asked Rose.

"Well… you don't know what happened to my bike, do you?"

He was surprised when they all laughed.

"I knew you were going to say that," said Lily, with a grin.

"Why… _do_ you know what happened to it?" he asked, eagerness creeping back into his voice.

James chuckled.

"Yes. It's sitting in Grandad Weasley's garage. Hagrid gave it to him. Not that he's ever flown it, or even ridden it normally. He just likes looking at it. I'm sure he'd give it back to you."

Sirius' eyes lit up.

"_Brilliant_," he said delightedly, "That's another thing I thought I'd never see again!"

"Grandma Weasley'll kick up a fuss," said Rose, with a grin, "She doesn't approve of motorbikes."

"Wait… this is Arthur and Molly Weasley you're talking about, right?"

Rose nodded, raising her eyebrows.

"Yes. Did you know them?"

"Well… not very well," Sirius admitted, "I never overlapped with them at Hogwarts; they'd already left by the time I started. I knew Molly's brothers a bit better. They were in their sixth year when I was in my first, though… they were killed, of course, a few years later. But I met Molly and Arthur a few times. They seemed like pretty nice people. Had a whole crowd of little boys."

Rose laughed.

"The youngest of those little boys is my dad."

James was feeling around in his pockets.

"Damn. Rosie, can I use your Communicator a minute?"

"If you must," Rose handed it over, a little reluctantly, "Why, what do you want it for?"

James simply grinned, and pressed his wand to the disk. This one glowed green, and then James held it up to his mouth.

"Lou. Unless you've pulled a pretty boy and are otherwise engaged, get yourself over to my parents' house. They've gone out, Sirius is here if you want to meet him, and we're having a party. In fact, get over here even if you _have_ pulled. This is going to be much more fun than whatever you're doing…"

"Jamie! We are _not_ having a party!" Molly exclaimed.

"And as you just sent that from _my_ communicator," put in Rose, "and messages only appear as text, not a voice, he's going to go to the wrong house. Also, d'you mind not being vulgar when you're pretending to be me?"

"Damn," James pressed his wand to the thing again, "Lou? This is James, by the way, not Rose. So that's James' parents' house. Now stop sucking him off and get yourself over here. Oh, and Rose is annoyed with me for the last message. So just to get it clear, that was me too. Although, I don't think she should complain about other people being _vulgar_…"

"Who is this?" Sirius asked, aside to Lily, while James and Rose bickered about which of them was better at being vulgar.

"Our cousin," Lily said resignedly, "Louis. James' best friend. If _he_ turns up, things are going to get messy."

"Oh," Sirius looked startled, "He's a bloke? So, all that about pulling a boy…?"

"Is perfectly possible. Louis' gay."

"Oh," Sirius said again, processing this.

"James, this is ridiculous," Molly scolded, "You can't just invite people over to your parents' house…"

"Of course I can. It's only Louis."

"Yes, but we're not having a party here. If you want a party, go to Freya's, like Rose said. We're _adults_, not teenagers, and Aunt Ginny's trusting us to _behave_ like adults."

"Oh, stop being fusty, Moll, and have some fun," James said easily.

Molly looked at Lily for support, but Lily could only shrug at her cousin. She knew perfectly well that when James was in this mood, there was no arguing with him at all.

"Anyway," James said airily, "It's not a party. There are only six of us, even if Louis comes. I only said that to get Louis here."

Sirius had been sitting with his chair tilted back on two legs, for the most part simply watching the proceedings, laughter in his eyes. Now he let his chair fall back onto the floor.

"Who says six people can't make a party?" he demanded, "Depends on the people, doesn't it?" he looked around at them, a mischievous gleam in his eye, "And it sounds like I'm going to have to teach you folks how to party properly…"

James' eyes glinted at this, but Louis picked that moment to apparate into the middle of the room, making Molly shriek, and everyone else jump. The fair-haired young man grinned round at them all.

"Hello, all." His blue eyes travelled round the room and came to rest on Sirius. Lily caught Rose's eye, and had to look away quickly before they both laughed. Rosie too had noticed the way Louis' eyes had flicked appreciatively up and down Sirius. Lily thought Sirius had probably noticed it too, judging by the expression on his face, and had to bite her lip to hide a giggle as James cheerfully introduced the two of them.

"Nice to meet you," said Louis, in friendly tones, having evidently got control over himself, and held out a hand. Sirius shook it, a slightly embarrassed look on his face. Lily guessed that he wasn't used to being so obviously checked out by a boy. Gayness hadn't been something you were open about in the Wizarding World in 1981. He was dealing with it reasonably well, though, and managed to grin back at Louis.

Their cousin's attention then turned to James.

"You're a bastard, you know, Jamie?" he said conversationally.

James grinned cheekily at him.

"Sorry. Did I really interrupt something?"

"No," Louis glared at him, "If you had, I'd have ignored you."

"Well then, what are you complaining about?"

"Well…" Louis looked around him, "Maybe the fact that you promised me a party, but there doesn't seem to be one happening…"

"We need some alcohol," James said, and headed for the cabinet in the corner. He found Molly blocking his way.

"James, _no_!" she exclaimed, "You cannot drink your parents' best wine."

James stopped and scowled at her, obviously debating whether it was worth forcing his way past her. She stood her ground and glared at him, her arms folded across her chest.

"Surely there's somewhere still open where we can buy some in this town?" demanded Sirius, who seemed to be warming to the whole idea. James' face cleared.

"Yes, of course. There'll be plenty of shops open. Who's coming?"

In the end, James, Louis, Sirius and Rose departed to find what they could, leaving a despairing Molly behind with Lily. Lily herself was feeling rather apprehensive, which was unusual for her. She usually liked a party as much as anyone, but this wasn't really a party, whatever Sirius said. It was just them getting drunk, and lots of things tended to spill out when people got drunk. The last thing she wanted was _Jamie_ getting wind of what had happened between her and Sirius.

She was also a little worried about Sirius. He was pretending hard that everything was perfectly fine, but it wasn't, of course. And she wasn't sure that getting absolutely plastered was the best way for him to deal with things.

But she murmured platitudes to an annoyed Molly, without really listening to what her cousin was saying, or being aware of what she was saying herself, and before long, the others were back. They had carrier bags filled with cans and bottles, and they were exuberant and laughing. Lily watched them coming in, and felt a flash of envy. It was a while since she had felt that relaxed and happy. Not since before she had visited 1980, in fact. Not that Sirius was nearly as relaxed and happy as he pretended, she was fairly sure of that, but she wished she could forget herself with James and Rose and Louis, as she would once have been able to do. What had changed? She didn't even know.

But she too could pretend, and she offered a bottle opener from a drawer (only to be laughed at by the others, who asked her what a wand was for, if not for opening alcohol) and accepted the drink James poured out for her (she wasn't sure what it was… it was all Muggle stuff, but she suspected that he had made it quite strong), and joined the general banter as they moved the party through into the lounge, and spread out across the sofa and armchairs.

* * *

An couple of hours later, Lily was feeling distinctly drunk. Her apprehensions had faded and she looked round happily at the little group, feeling at one with the world again.

Things had got a little noisy. James had put some music on; Lily wasn't sure what it was, as it wasn't the sort of thing she normally listened to, but it had a heavy bass line. Molly had unbent enough to drink a fair amount of wine, and was now sitting on the floor, giggling at nothing in particular. James and Sirius seemed to be engaged in some kind of argument about who had caused the most trouble at school; James, Louis and their friends, or Sirius and the Marauders. It seemed to consist of telling increasingly wild stories of pranks, parties and sexual exploits. Rose was winding them all up by putting in comments here and there, but Lily was content to watch the entertainment.

"An'… an' _then_," Jamie was saying, trying to lean forward in his chair, overbalancing, and slipping slowly down onto the floor. He looked a little surprised at his new position, and Rose giggled wildly at him, but then he frowned and continued with what he was saying.

"An' then, we let go, an' the _whole thing_ fell down! You should've see' their faces… det… detention for a week for tha' one." He grinned triumphantly up at them.

"Jamie," Rose put in, "You're _very _ drunk."

This had been obvious to Lily for some time, but she supposed Rose _might _have only just noticed.

James thought about it.

"Yeah… but so are you."

Rose rolled her eyes.

"I'm not nearly as drunk as you. How much have you had?"

James waved an empty bottle in the air.

"Jus' this."

Lily grabbed it out of his hands, looked at the label, and gave a horrified giggle.

"James, you've drunk a _whole bottle_ of brandy."

"Not fair," Sirius claimed, "We need to catch up."

He reached for another bottle, and fell against Louis, who pushed him upright again.

"I don't think you've got far to go, mate," he said with a grin.

Sirius looked a little put out.

"I've hardly drunk _anything_."

"I wouldn't say that," muttered Rose, staring at the empty cans littering the floor around Sirius.

"'S nothing," Sirius insisted, "I can drink much more than that. 'M not even drunk yet."

"Yeah, right," Rose snorted.

Sirius glared at them, and made another, more successful, attempt, to reach another drink.

"I can drink more th'n this, and still be… be…" he fumbled for the word and failed to find it, "not drunk."

"Sober," James put in helpfully.

"Who? You or him?" retorted Rose, at this, but this witticism seemed to much for James in his current state, and he simply stared at his cousin, his mouth slightly open.

"I'm… I'm _tipsy,_" Sirius said firmly, "Not _drunk_ yet."

"How would you define _drunk_?" Rose demanded. She was nothing like sober herself, but she had had considerably less to drink that either James or Sirius, and her words were less slurred.

Sirius grinned at her.

"Y're only _drunk_ if you can't stand up," he waved vaguely at James, "Like him. I c'n stand up." He proved it by struggling to his feet and grinning triumphantly, although he was swaying slightly.

He wandered across the room, swaying to the beat of the music, and waving his drink aimlessly.

Lily, who had somehow (she wasn't sure how) ended up slumped on Louis, watched him go, and found herself wishing things weren't so complicated. If only he wasn't Sirius Black; if he hadn't come from fifty years in the past; if he wasn't supposed to be her father's godfather. It might have been different. It might have been simple, like it had been for that brief time in the hotel.

Weird. Where had those thoughts come from? She thought she'd got it sorted out for herself. She had thought she had got over uncomfortable feelings. She tried to summon the feeling that she had that first morning under the cherry trees, when the idea of kissing him had felt so wrong. But she couldn't quite get it back again.

It was because she was drunk, she told herself. And because he was bloody good-looking, damn him. She let her eyes dwell on him. He was… well, you couldn't really call it dancing, although he might have thought that was what he was doing. And he had pulled Rose up with him, and she was drunk enough not to resist too hard, and they were staggering around, laughing, and sort-of-dancing.

She heard Louis laugh beside her, and looked up at him. She wasn't the only one watching. Louis looked down at her, realised he had been caught, and grinned.

"He's straight, isn't he?" he murmured, his eyes dancing.

She giggled and nodded.

"'Fraid so."

"Damn," Louis gave an overly dramatic sigh, although he didn't look too upset, "All the best ones are."

Lily smiled.

"You know… girls say it's the other way round."

Louis chuckled.

"Well, they can't both be true. And that one's straight, and I'd say he's pretty damn' good, wouldn't you?"

"Hmm," Lily agreed, and then realised what she had said, "I mean… no! I mean, he's okay, I suppose."

Louis looked at her in surprise.

"Lil… do you like him?"

"No," she insisted, "Not like that."

Because it was true. She really, really didn't. Did she? No, she didn't. Because that was _dangerous_. Because… if she let it, it might become more than casual attraction, and she could not let that happen. Because Sirius Black did not play for keeps.

Louis was still looking suspiciously at her, but everyone was distracted at that moment by Sirius himself, who had fallen over a chair, and came crashing down, with much colourful swearing. Rose simply stood there, laughing, so Lily went to his aid, trying not to laugh herself.

He wasn't hurt, but didn't seem in any hurry to get up. He simply sat there, grinning at her from behind the hair that had flopped over his face, while she tried to haul him up. He was still thin, and pretty light, but not light enough for her to take his full weight.

"What were you saying, Sirius?" Rose demanded from behind him, "You're not drunk until you can't stand up…?"

He tilted his head back to look at her, and laughed.

"Can stand up. Just tripped. Anyone can trip."

Rose laughed mockingly at him, and Lily giggled.

"Hey, S'rius," James called over, "'S this as good as your parties used to be then?"

Lily bit her lip as sudden pain flickered behind the blue eyes.

"'S… pretty good," Sirius agreed, but he sounded a little uncertain, "Just… a few people missing, you know?"

James looked puzzled and opened his mouth to say more, but Louis was both sober enough to realise what Sirius was thinking of, and close enough to kick James. James looked reproachfully up at his cousin, saw the warning in Louis' eyes, and came to a sudden realisation.

"Oh… right… shit."

"We used to have good times," Sirius said brokenly. He was talking to the whole room, but he was looking at Lily.

"We… we were good, back then. All the fun times… we never thought it would end like that. I mean, we knew… there was a war on, we knew what could happen. But you don't think… you don't think it's going to be you. We used to have times like this. Last year… we had a Christmas party. Me and James organised it. We did _great_ parties. We… we weren't ready for it all to finish…"

Lily had already known that Sirius' mood could swing wildly, and that he talked much more when he was drunk, but the others were looking a little disconcerted by this outburst. The mood had changed suddenly. Sirius stopped himself with an effort, and tried to smile.

"Sorry. Didn't mean to… Think maybe I need a breath of air."

He used the arm of the chair to pull himself up, and staggered out of the door. They gazed after him for a moment.

"Shit," said James, suddenly sounding a little more sober, "I didn't mean…"

"It wasn't you," said Lily, wearily, "Well, it was. But I reckon it'd have happened anyway. I thought it might. He's drunk… and he's bound to remember things. This is the first fun he's had since… well, you know. It's the first fun he's had without James. It was always going to remind him," she shook her head, trying to clear it, "I'll go and find him. Make sure he's okay."

She followed him out of the door, her walking not exactly steady, although it was better than his had been.

She found him sitting on the front step, looking down the path. Cuthbert had found him first, and he had his arm around the little dog, absently rubbing his ears, while Cuthbert leaned happily into him.

Lily sat down on the other side of Cuthbert and looked at Sirius across the hairy brown head. After a moment, he looked round and met her eyes, his face in shadow.

"Sorry," he said.

She gave him a half-smile.

"You're apologising again," she told him.

He opened his mouth, and then shut it again.

"I almost apologised for apologising," he told her, chuckling slightly.

"Well, don't start that!" she said jokingly, "But you don't need to be sorry anyway. Everyone understands."

He nodded slowly.

"Thanks."

For a moment, they were silent, then he began again.

"It… just made me remember. We were talking about all the good times we had at school. I want to remember those things. All the time I was in Azkaban, I couldn't remember them. I tried. I tried so damn' hard to remember... and I couldn't. It... it was horrible. And now I _can_ remember them… I want to. I want to remember James when he was getting drunk, and deciding it would be a good idea to go flying when he was drunk, and crashing his broom into the hedge… not when he was lying there in the hallway and I saw his face…

"But it's too hard. I can't think of James, without remembering that he's gone. And… and _he _was there. Always there. In every memory. Smiling and laughing and drinking with us… and sneaking off to his master whenever our backs were turned… I don't want to remember _him_."

There was nothing to be said. Lily reached out and found the hand that rested on Cuthbert's head, and squeezed it. Sirius started slightly, then turned and smiled slightly at her.

"Thanks, Lily," he said softly, "Thanks for everything."

"I haven't done much," she said, surprised, "It's been Mum and Dad mostly."

"Yes, you have," he corrected her, but did not elaborate. Instead, he slipped an arm round her shoulders and squeezed gently. She tensed slightly, then relaxed. It didn't feel wrong, she realised. In fact, she was surprised at how… _right_ it felt. It wasn't a sexual gesture; she almost giggled at that thought, because Cuthbert was sandwiched between them, and as Sirius pulled her closer, the dog turned round and licked her nose, with a pleased whine. You didn't get much less sexual than that.

Then Cuthbert got bored, and wriggled out from between them to run down into the darkened garden, and suddenly there was nothing between them, and his body was warm against hers in the chill air. She was reminded of the night when he and James had first found her, and she had ridden back to his flat in front of him, warm in his body heat. And the hand that wasn't around her shoulder had found her own hand again, and she realised that she wasn't actually sure how long he'd been holding it, only now his fingers were stroking it…

Her breath hitched slightly, and beneath the alcoholic fog, alarm bells were ringing. _No, Lily! Danger!_

Then the door slammed open behind them, there was a split second of horrified silence, before a drunken but still forceful voice said:

"What the _hell_?"

They sprang apart, and Sirius fell off the step onto the ground. Lily managed not to, by grabbing the door lintel. She looked up into the confused and outraged face of her older brother.

"Jamie…" she started, but he interrupted, his voice much less slurred than it had been before.

"What… what's going on?" he glared at Sirius, and Lily noticed with dismay that he had his wand in his hand.

"James, don't be stupid!" she said, angrily, struggling to her feet, "_Nothing's_ going on. You're completely overreacting…"

He turned his glower on her.

"Don't give me that, Lily. I could see what was going on. You were sitting there with your arms round each other, holding hands, with your faces about a centimetre from each other. I'm not stupid!"

Lily met his glare with one of her own.

"No, James! You _are_ being stupid! And ridiculous! It… it wasn't like that! It was just…"

"Just what?" demanded James, as she trailed off.

She looked helplessly at Sirius, and then back at James. She wanted to say that she had simply been offering comfort, but that would seem somehow unfair and patronising, when Sirius was still right there. And… she wasn't entirely sure that it was true. And the alcohol wouldn't let her think properly.

James had obviously interpreted her silence differently, and his scowl deepened, as he looked at Sirius.

Look… mate," he said angrily, "I know you've had a rough time. But you stay away from my sister, okay?"

Sirius looked as though he might be going to reply, but Lily got there first.

"Fuck that, James!" she burst our furiously, "Don't you dare try and run my life! I'm _twenty_, James. I can look after myself. I don't need you treating me like a kid you have to look after! You're always like this, and I'm bloody sick of it! I know what I'm doing…"

"Do you?" he stared at her, "Lily, that is _Sirius Black_. Dad's _godfather. _He was born in 1959. Just think about that for a minute. It… it's just _wrong_! And apart from that, he… everyone knows what he's like. You'll get hurt, Lily…"

"No, I won't!" Lily said, with increasing frustration, "Because there is _nothing _going on, James. You're completely misinterpreting…"

But Sirius had got to his feet and was looking at James. He was taller than Jamie, but he was standing a couple of steps below, and had to look up.

"Look… James," he said, with difficulty, and Lily thought it might be the first time he had addressed her brother by his name, "First of all, she's right. There was nothing going on."

Lily felt a flicker of hurt at the firmness in his voice. Unlike her, he didn't sound as though he was lying. Had she been the one to misinterpret things?

"Second," Sirius went on, "I get why you'd be worried. I know… I don't have the best reputation. At least, I know I didn't, back in my own time. I kind of hoped people might have forgotten by now, but obviously not… Anyway, I know… I _have _hurt people. I know that. I've hurt people without ever meaning to. Sometimes people I'd rather have died than hurt.

"But… but I'd _never_ do that to Lily. She's done way too much for me. You all have. I could never treat her like any old girl. She means a lot to me, you know. But like she said, it wasn't like _that_. It _isn't_ like that between us. And… if anyone's going to get hurt…" his voice had lost its determined ring, and the last words sounded like they had escaped without him meaning them to. But he caught himself and broke off before finishing the sentence.

The anger had faded out of James' eyes, and he was looking a little bit shamefaced.

He looked hard at Sirius, and then nodded.

"Okay. I'm sorry, I guess…"

"So you bloody well should be!" Lily put in, angrily, "Honestly, Jamie, I'm sick of you being like this. We're not living in the nineteenth century! You don't have to protect me from everything! I'm perfectly capable…"

"Okay, okay, I said I'm sorry!" James held his hands up in surrender, "I overreacted, and I'm sorry. And very drunk," he added ruefully, "Happy now?"

She wasn't exactly happy, but she said nothing. Her brain was catching up with what had been said, and Sirius' last words were replaying in her head. What had he been going to say? What had he meant?

"Wha's going on?" Rose suddenly appeared behind James, "What are you all doing? Why were you shouting?"

"Nothing," said James quickly, "Come on. Let's go back inside…"

"Oh…" Lily looked over her shoulder suddenly, "Cuthbert got out."

"Oh, shit," James groaned, "_Cuthbert_!" he yelled into the garden, "Come on, boy!"

There was a joyful answering bark, but no scruffy brown dog appeared. James groaned again.

"We can't leave him out. He could get onto the road."

"It's okay," Sirius said, "I'll find him." And with that, he transformed. James and Rose, who had not seen his dog form, looked impressed.

"Wow," commented Rose, faintly.

Sirius gave her what was obviously a grin, and set off into the garden, his nose telling him exactly where Cuthbert was.

They stood on the step, watching as he trotted down the path, only just visible in the light spilling from the open door.

"I really am sorry, Lil," James said quietly. Lily sighed.

"It's okay."

Sirius veered off the path, passing the other side of the garden furniture that was still out. And suddenly, so suddenly that all the three people watching could do was blink, the air rippled, and lit up in a glittering glow, bright in the darkness.

And when it had cleared, the big black dog had disappeared.


	16. Where the Boundaries are Thin

**Disclaimer: I do not own JK Rowling's characters or world**

**A/N: Thanks so much for all the reviews on the last chapter guys! We did get above 50 :-D. So, thanks to xandromedax, arwenjanelilylyra, Katara97 and Gaia v, who should've already had personal replies. And to jackieee and bib, who left unsigned reviews, also a big thank you! I'm so glad you're enjoying it!**

**I should also thank all the people who've added this story to their favourites and alerts; it really means a lot to me to see that so may of you like it enough to want to know what happens. It would mean even more if you felt like dropping me a line to say **_**why**_** you like it… not that I'm hinting or anything ;-P. I love you all anyway!**

**Sorry this chapter is a little short, and maybe a bit of a filler. I had an exam that lasted three days last week, and I'm afraid I've spent most of the weekend enjoying some relaxation in the sun, so this is pretty much all I've had time for. I've written a bit more, and planned to carry on a bit longer, but it had been a while since I updated, so I thought I'd post it as it was. I'm hoping to update again in the next couple of days though.**

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**A reminder of what happened at the end last time (it has been a good week since I updated I think, so you might have forgotten…):**

"_It's okay," Sirius said, "I'll find him." And with that, he transformed. James and Rose, who had not seen his dog form, looked impressed._

"_Wow," commented Rose, faintly._

_Sirius gave her what was obviously a grin, and set off into the garden, his nose telling him exactly where Cuthbert was. _

_They stood on the step, watching as he trotted down the path, only just visible in the light spilling from the open door. _

"_I really am sorry, Lil," James said quietly. Lily sighed._

"_It's okay."_

_Sirius veered off the path, passing the other side of the garden furniture that was still out. And suddenly, so suddenly that all the three people watching could do was blink, the air rippled, and lit up in a glittering glow, bright in the darkness. And the big black dog disappeared._

_

* * *

_

For a moment, they simply stood there, frozen. Then Rose let out a gasp of air, which broke the spell a little.

"Fuck," said James, dazedly, "What…?"

Lily stood there, still holding the door lintel; icy, numb astonishment gripping her. She did not speak or move as James made to rush over to the place Sirius had been, and Rose, who was still an almost-trained Auror, even when she was drunk, grabbed him and stopped him.

"No, Jamie, don't!" Rose's voice seemed to come from a long way away, "You don't know what it was…"

"But… shit…."

Lily did not move or speak, either, as Rose explained urgently to a drunk James exactly why you didn't go rushing up to the spot where you've just seen your friend vanish by powerful and mysterious forces. Or as Louis came up behind them, wanting to know what had happened. Their voices, startled, frightened and trying to be sober, were faint and unreal.

Sirius had gone. She knew what must have happened. Her thoughts were suddenly absolutely clear, and she could hear Albus Dumbledore as if it had been yesterday.

"_Your own time has a powerful pull on you, you see. It's where you belong, and will automatically pull you back if it can… You could try simply apparating to the point at which you first appeared in this time. I think that you are more likely to get through there, because the boundaries are already worn thin there…"_

Sirius did not belong in this time. He had walked across the point at which he had appeared in 2028, and he had been pulled back… back to the time in which he was a hated criminal…

And why did her heart feel as though it had just fallen out through the soles of her feet?

Suddenly, all the little moments they had when 'nothing' had happened felt like wasted moments. The feelings that she had been careful to suppress; the feelings she had forced back just now, when he had taken her hand, suddenly hit her strongly, and she realised that, dangerous, stupid and pointless though it might be, she had gone and fallen for Sirius Black.

And he had gone, and he had no way of getting back.

Suddenly, her limbs were released from whatever had frozen them in place, and, ignoring her brother and cousins, who were still arguing frantically on the doorstep, she pushed past them, inside, and rushed towards the stairs.

She heard James call her name, but it still seemed to come from far away. All she could think of was that Sirius was in danger; very grave danger, perhaps; and that they had to get him out of it. And she could think of only one way of doing that.

She took the stairs two at a time, almost stumbled at the top, caught herself on the banister, and, with hardly a pause, flung herself in at her father's study door.

She did not hear the steps coming up after her, and when Louis appeared in the doorway, he found her frantically pulling drawers open, scattering their contents around the room, scrabbling around in them, and slamming them shut again.

"Lil?" he said, hesitantly, but she took no notice, "Lily," he raised his voice slightly, and crossed the room to her, "Lil, what are you doing?"

She paused for a moment, and looked up at him, her eyes wide and fearful and her face full of anguish. She saw the concern in his face, and the shock still visible in his eyes, after what had happened.

"We have to get him back!" she whispered urgently.

He stared at her.

"You think he's gone back… to his own time? That's what James said must have happened. He kept going on about something somebody called Robbie told him about a golden light or something… but he wasn't making much sense."

Lily nodded.

"That's exactly what happened when I did it. He's been pulled back to his own time, the way I was… And we have to get him back!"

"Well, yeah, obviously," Louis agreed, "But how, exactly? Why are you going through your dad's stuff?"

She had expected him to argue with her, and blinked at him, startled. He raised his eyebrows at her expression.

"Well, we have to do _something,_" he elaborated,"He chose to stay here, didn't he? And now he's stuck back there again - where he's going to be in quite a lot of danger if anyone sees him - without a wand. And very drunk."

Suddenly, the shock wore off, and the fire that had spurred her into furious action went out. She slumped onto the floor, and the tears came into her eyes.

Louis crouched beside her.

"Hey, Lil," he said softly, "You okay?"

She gave a movement of her head that really could have been a nod or a shake, and a sob shook her shoulders.

"Oh Merlin," he groaned, and slipped an arm round her shoulders, "You _do_ like him don't you?"

"I… I don't know," she gulped, "I thought I didn't. But it doesn't matter anyway. We have to get him back, whatever… whatever I…" she looked up him suddenly, tears on her cheeks, looking almost pleading, "Don't say anything to Jamie, Louis?"

Louis smiled ruefully.

"Don't worry. I don't want to make this even more complicated than it is at the moment. But seriously, Lil. What _are_ you doing?"

Determination came into her face. She had recovered from the shock a little, and was feeling calmer.

"There's only one way to get from your own time to someone else's, as far as I know, and that's the Time Turner. They didn't get rid of it, I know they didn't. It has to be somewhere."

"Yes, but not here," Rose's voice came from the doorway, and Lily looked up, wondering how long Rose had been standing there. Her cousin lifted an eyebrow.

"Uncle Harry didn't keep it, Lil. Mum took it back. It's hers, after all, and she was the one with the license to mess around with it."

"You mean it's at your house?" Lily asked, eagerly.

Rose nodded.

"Somewhere, yeah. Unless she took it back to the Ministry. She might have done."

Lily looked from one to the other, with an intense expression on her face.

"You're up for it, then? You'll help me?"

Rose and Louis exchanged glances.

"What'd you do if we said no?" Rose asked.

"I'd do it by myself," Lily said at once.

Rose narrowed her eyes and looked sharply at her cousin, apparently seeing or hearing something in Lily's voice or expression that startled her.

"Well, we can hardly let you do that," was all she said, "And Sirius could be in danger."

"What have you done with James?" asked Louis, suddenly.

"And where's Molly?" Lily asked, realising suddenly that their other cousin had never joined them at the front door.

Rose allowed a faint grin to cross her face.

"Well, Jamie may have sobered up enough to walk, but the stairs appear to have been too much for him. And Molly made for the bathroom after you went after Sirius. I don't think she was feeling too well suddenly."

"So… we're the sober ones," said Lily dryly.

Louis ran a hand confusedly over his eyes.

"I don't feel very sober. My head's spinning like fuck."

"You're in a hell of a better state than James and Molly. I don't know what's wrong with Moll, though; she didn't drink that much."

"She doesn't drink very often," Lily reminded them, "It doesn't take much at all to make her drunk. The worst part is that Sirius wasn't in a much better state than James."

"Someone had better go and make sure Molly's okay," Rose suggested, "And the others had better get over to mine and tell Mum what's happened. I very much doubt she'll let _us_ go, though, so don't get your hopes up."

"I'm the only one who's been before!" Lily argued.

"Tell her that, not me," Rose, who seemed to have sobered up completely, said briskly. They emerged from the study to find James slumped half way up the stairs, and half passed out.

Louis sighed.

"Okay. I'd better sort him out. It's not like I've never had to do it before. And I'll make sure Molly's okay too. You two go. But come back here and let me know what's happening, right?"

"Apparate me, Rosie?" Lily requested, "You know I always miss. And I'd probably splinch myself if I tried now…"

Rose nodded, grabbed her cousin's arm, and they disapparated with a crack.

They arrived in the front hall, Rose not feeling the need to knock on her parents' door any more than James had. The house, thought, was silent and dark. Rose groaned.

"Of course! We're idiots! Mum and Dad are going to be at the same thing as your parents!"

Lily looked wildly at Rose.

"Rosie, we don't have _time_! We have to get to Sirius!"

Perhaps Rose was still slightly drunk after all, because normally, she wouldn't have agreed to it. She had never exactly been a rule-keeper, but she had always (to her mother's relief) tempered her rule-breaking with a healthy dose of practical common sense. And she would be a fully qualified Auror in a matter of weeks; her training had taught her to recognise dangerous situations, and to evaluate and respond to them properly and quickly.

But now, still reeling from the shock and panic that had followed Sirius' disappearance, and faced with a desperate Lily, she simply nodded curtly.

"All right. If the Time Turner's here, I know where it'll be. But if you use it, I'm coming with you."

* * *

By the time they arrived back in Barnstaple, Molly had emerged, rather pale but significantly more sober than she had been when they had last seen her, having emptied most of the alcohol from her stomach into the toilet.

Louis had also managed to revive James (apparently by pouring a jug of water over his head, by the looks of him and the stair carpet), but had not succeeded in moving him off the stairs. He was, however, sitting up, and talking agitatedly, with much gesticulation. Louis was sitting a few steps above him, his elbows resting on his knees and his chin on his hands, listening wearily, and occasionally trying to interrupt. Molly was also seated on the stairs, on the one below James, attempting to offer James a glass of water. James was ignoring her, clutching his hair, and looking distraught. He broke off whatever he was saying, however, as Rose and Lily appeared.

"Did you see them?" Molly asked eagerly, having obviously been filled in.

Rose shook her head.

"No, they were out. We should have realised. They'll be at the Ministry too. But we found the Time Turner."

Molly looked horrified.

"But… but you can't…"

"We have to!" Lily burst in, "We have to get him back! Merlin knows what's happening to him…"

"Nothing's happening to him," Rose pointed out, calmly, "Stop panicking, Lily. Whatever happened to him, it's _already happened_. He's in 1981; at least, we presume he is. So it's all already happened. The 1980s aren't existing alongside us in some sort of parallel reality, you know…"

"Not the time for a lecture, Rose," Lily broke in, impatiently, "We need to get going."

"Yes, but that's the point, Lily. It doesn't matter how long we spend here; we can travel back to wherever Sirius is, and still get there before anything happens. We could even wait for Uncle Harry and Aunt Ginny to come home, come to think of it…" she broke off at the expression on Lily's face.

"I don't think Lily's in the mood to wait," said Louis, half jokingly.

"Okay. Fine," Rose said, with a sigh.

"Who's coming?" Lily demanded.

The others looked at her for a moment. It wasn't like Lily to take charge like this. This was a sharp, decisive Lily that they had only seen a few times in their lives.

"I'm coming," James began to struggle to his feet.

Rose shot him a scornful glance.

"Oh, yes. Great idea, Jamie. You can hardly stand up, let alone use your wand properly, but you think it would be a good plan for you to go back fifty years in time, to help rescue somebody who, let's remember, was almost as drunk as you when he disappeared!"

"I can so use my wand properly," James protested, pulling it out and preparing to demonstrate the truth of this statement. Louis grabbed it out of his hand before he could do anything.

"Don't, James! I've seen the damage you can do by casting spells when you're drunk, and it's not pretty. Remember the jinx that backfired and gave everybody within three feet blue warts?"

James grinned broadly at this memory, and then frowned.

"Yeah… but I ought to come. I'm not letting _her_," he pointed at Lily, "go off by herself again. And I'm the oldest. And I was shouting at Sirius…" he looked anxiously at Lily, "I'm sorry about that. Honestly, I am. I never meant him to disappear… I was being a cock…"

"Yeah, well, nothing new there," Lily muttered, "Though you hardly _made_ it happen. And we already talked about you trying to run my life, so less about what you're going to _let_ me do, if you don't mind!"

"Stop being a prat, James," Rose broke in exasperatedly, before James could reply, "You're obviously not in any state to come, and neither's Molly. She looks like she's just spewed her guts up…"

Molly went a bit pink, but looked determined.

"I don't think _any_ of you are in a state to do this!" she exclaimed, "I think we ought to wait…"

Lily groaned, and looked at Louis and Rose.

"Come on, you two! You agreed with me…"

Louis and Rose looked at each for a long moment. Neither of them was quite sure what was going on with Lily and Sirius, although both had realised that there was something funny. But this was a Lily they did not know, and she was proving as impossible to argue with as James at his most obstinate.

Eventually, Louis nodded.

"All right. I'll come with you, Lil."

"I already said I was coming," Rose added.

"You can't…!" Molly wailed, but her protest was a feeble one, and none of the others were taking any notice of her, and more than they were of James, who was still insisting that he was coming too.

"Look," Louis turned to Molly, "Ideally, we'd get there, get him, and get out. I don't see why we can't do that, unless he's been stupid enough to go somewhere, so we can't follow him. But hopefully, we'll be back long before Uncle Harry and Aunt Ginny get home," he looked at Lily, "When you go back to your own time, you come back the same length of time later as you spent in the other time, right?"

Lily stared at him, trying to work out this slightly involved logic, and looking confused. Rose sighed.

"What he means is, you spent half a night and most of the next day in the past, didn't you? And when you came back, that's how long you'd been gone too, right? So however long we spend in the past, we'll have been gone from the present the same length of time."

Lily hesitated.

That was what she had let them believe (by the simple method of leaving part of the story out) because otherwise, she had been unable to think of any way of accounting for the night they had spent in the hotel, without lying outright; something Lily knew perfectly well that she could not do convincingly.

"Um…" she said weakly, "well, I don't think it was _exactly_ the same length of time…" She felt colour flood into her face at the half-truth. Louis, Rose and Molly all gave her odd looks and inwardly, she cursed the red-head complexion that made her blush so easily.

"But it wasn't too far off?" Louis questioned.

_You have to tell them!_ her mind told her. But she _couldn't_.

"No, not too far," she found herself agreeing meekly, as her mind shrieked with dismay. What on earth would they say if they knew that it had been twenty-four hours out? But there was no _way_ she could tell them that _now._

"Well, then," Louis went on with what he had been saying, "We'll hopefully be back within half an hour or so, before anyone even knows we've gone. But if we _do_ have any problems, you might have to tell someone…"

"Uncle Harry," Rose said firmly, "He's the first person to tell. He's got the whole Auror Office at his fingertips, and they're the best there are. And if he wanted, he could get the whole Ministry activated in about a minute. They all do exactly what he suggests."

Molly groaned at this idea, but Louis nodded.

"I don't expect it'll come to that, but…"

"Fuck this!" James burst out suddenly, "I am _not_ letting you lot go off without me like this! I'm not even that drunk anymore. I'm coming too!"

"James, you still can't talk without slurring!" said Rose, rolling her eyes, "You'd never get passed for a mission in the Auror Department, not in a million years, and this is at least as risky as most of the stuff we do. There's no way I'm taking you along like this; it would just be irresponsible."

"Because this whole thing isn't completely irresponsible anyway!" Molly muttered, sarcastically.

"Oh, come _on_!" Lily pleaded, in agony at all the delays.

So, before either James or Molly could argue any further, Louis hauled himself up, climbed over the two of them on the stairs, and joined Lily and Rose in the hallway.

"Right. What do we do?"

Lily looked worried.

"I don't know how it works with more than one person," she said nervously, "But I think we really ought to put the chain round all of our necks, to be safe. Only, it's not long enough…"

Rose rolled her eyes yet again, and tapped the chain with her wand, muttering an incantation. The chain instantly extended considerably, and Lily looked sheepish.

"Oh. Great."

Louis, though, was eying her worriedly.

"Lil, do you know how to work this thing at all? Didn't you sort of do it by accident last time?"

Lily looked defiant.

"Well… I think I must have turned it by mistake last time. But there was presumably only one time it could take me to, because there was only one time when some relative of mine was in that exact part of London.

"But Dumbledore told Sirius how to control it a bit more. It's all to do with how many times you spin in, and what you concentrate on. Sirius told me about it. Well, he told Aunt Hermione, and I was listening. And it should be exactly the same, because it's still forty seven years we want to go. I'm sure I can do it."

"Right," Rose nodded tensely, "Well, if you're sure… We'd better go outside. Sirius didn't disappear in the house, and we'd give some poor Muggles a bit of a shock if we appeared in their hall. In fact, we'd be better off out of the garden too. We don't want to be arrested for trespassing."

They made their way down the dark garden, and out of the gate. James and Molly had followed them, no longer protesting (Molly seemed to have resigned herself to it, and James had possibly been forced to rethink his statement that he 'wasn't even that drunk,' when he had tried to walk straight).

Rose threw the chain over their heads, Louis ducking so that she could reach, and Lily, with trembling hands, took up the Time Turner.

As she spun it, she counted under her breath, concentrating hard. She could not make a mistake…

She spun it for the last time, let go, and felt the magic begin… and at that precise moment, as the roar began, she felt a small hairy body hit her, and a pair of paws scrabbling at her hip, and she suddenly remembered that they had never found Cuthbert. Instinctively, her fingers fumbled for a collar, and she found it, just as the now familiar rushing wind and glow enveloped them.

She heard a terrified yelp, and a shout from Louis as they were flung sideways, and the four of them landed in a heap on the pavement.

* * *

_James and Molly watched them go. Molly was biting her lip with worry, and James was scowling heavily, evidently jealous of the adventure. _

"_Oh Merlin, I hope they come straight back," Molly whispered._

"_Yeah," James agreed vaguely, and then he grinned suddenly, "Hey, I just thought, though. What Lily said, about doing _exactly_ the same thing Sirius did. I hope it worked the way she thought it would. Because Sirius was coming forty seven years into the _future_…"_

_Molly gazed at him, open-mouthed._

"_Jamie… you mean… why didn't you _say_ something?"_

"_I only just thought of it," he said, calmly, "But admit it, Moll. It would be pretty funny, if they ended up forty seven years in the future, with our grandchildren…"_

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**A/N: Well, I have started to write the next chapter, but exactly what happens is up in the air at the moment. I have a few ideas of where it could go… **

**So, tell me, readers, what do you think should happen? Should James' sudden thought be right or not? (Just to note: I want to know what you think, but I may or may not take any notice of it… To be honest, it was a random thought that suddenly occurred to me, exactly at the point it occurred to James, so I stuck it in with no intention of it actually being what happened… but it's a possibility…:-P)**


	17. Rescue Mission

**Disclaimer: I do not own JK Rowling's characters or world**

**A/N: Well, thanks to xandromedax, HPFanFicLuvr, ermireallydon'tcare, arwenjanelilylyra and tallytiny for the latest reviews – I love you guys; brownies and cookies and whatever you like best for you all :-D. And more for anyone who reviews this chapter! **

**And an absolutely unanimous answer to my question about whether to take them into future or not, which was interesting, but I'm afraid there is no clear answer just yet. On the other hand, more than one of you was impatient to see what had happened to Sirius, and you do get that answered…**

**To tallytiny, my unsigned reviewer – I'm so glad you like it, and thanks for your suggestions. I'm glad you enjoyed the earlier chapters – I enjoyed writing them too, so I actually liked your idea a lot, and I've been thinking hard to see if I could make it work, but I'm just not sure it does… because if I send them further back to a younger Sirius and James, then we'd have to have more memory charms so that they wouldn't remember when Lily turned up the next time. And they'd have to go through the whole 'do we save them, do we not?' again, and I'm not sure I want to do that again. So, I'm sorry, but I don't think that's going to happen, much as I'd like it to – I enjoyed writing a 'happy' Sirius as much as you enjoyed reading it!**

**And on that note, I'm currently working on a companion piece to this, which tells the story of Sirius while he's at school, and immediately afterwards. It's the same 'verse, so you get to see more of the same Sirius, James and Lily, only without any time travel. So watch out for that when this one's finished!**

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Rose reacted with the swiftness that her training had taught her, and was on her feet with her wand out, before they had noticed her move.

With rather less grace, Lily extracted herself from Louis and stood up, still clutching Cuthbert's collar. The dog was cowering against her.

"Rose!" she hissed, "This is a Muggle neighbourhood! I doubt if there's going to be anything for you to use your wand on."

"Shut up!" whispered Rose, and threw out a spell, presumably to check that there was nobody nearby. Then she glanced round at Lily, and stared.

"What the hell? Why the fuck did you bring the dog?"

"I didn't mean to!" Lily exclaimed.

"Ssh!" Rose hissed, "Don't make so much noise! There are people not too far away, although I think they're mostly in the houses. We should still be careful though. Sirius must be around here somewhere, or we wouldn't have got here. _Lumos_," she muttered, and watched the tip of her wand light up.

Lily looked around. The neighbourhood hadn't really changed all that much. The cherry trees in their garden had gone, and there was a different tree that wasn't there in 2028. There was a white fence, where their own was plain wood, and the car that had been parked outside their next door neighbour's house had gone. Despite that, however, it was entirely recognisable. Lily felt a chill, though, as she realised that she was, once again, in the past. Beside her, a frightened Cuthbert whimpered deep in his throat.

But where was Sirius?

"Louis, why are you still sitting on the ground?" Rose whispered, "Get up!"

"I can't!" Louis spoke through gritted teeth, and Lily stared at him in surprise that turned to dismay. He was clutching his foot and seemed to be in pain.

"I've hurt my ankle," he explained in a whisper, and his face seemed a little white in the light from Rose's wand, "I turned it when we fell over…"

Rose swore, and crouched beside him.

"Can you move it?"

He tried, and swore himself.

"Fuck. No."

Frowning, Rose pulled up the leg of his jeans, and examined what she could see of his ankle above his trainers. She felt it gently, and he gritted his teeth.

"I don't think it's broken," she said, worriedly, "But it might be sprained. We should get your shoe off…"

"Rose!" Lily interrupted in a whisper, ""We have to look for Sirius!"

Rose looked round, almost angrily.

"Where is he? He must be somewhere close! I thought you said he had to be within wand range? He must have noticed us arrive!"

"We have to look for him," Lily repeated, "You stay here with Louis, and I'll…"

"Don't be ridiculous," said Rose, standing up, "I'll go, and you stay here. I'm an _Auror_. I'm trained for emergencies. And I know how to move around without being seen, and how to find people who don't want to be found…"

"Sirius _does_ want to be found!" Lily argued, "And you know all that, but not how to heal a sprained ankle?"

"He wants to be found by _us_," Rose retorted, "But not by anyone else in this time. I'm beginning to think he doesn't even know we're here. And I said I was an Auror, not a Healer. I'm not Albus. Muscle injuries are the hardest to heal. If it had been a cut, or even a broken bone, I might have been able to do something, but I can't do ligaments, or whatever he's damaged."

"For Merlin's sake!" Louis broke in, "_Neither_ of you should go wandering round by yourselves. Go together, and leave me here. I'll be fine. I can disillusion myself, and nobody'll even see me."

Lily and Rose looked at each other.

"First rule of Auror training," said Rose, firmly, "Well, maybe not _first_, but it's pretty close to the start. If you're on a mission, somebody gets hurt and the party has to split, _never_ leave the injured party alone. Sorry, Lou. Not happening."

Lily nodded.

"You can't even walk, Louis. I'll stay here, like Rose said."

Rose also nodded, relieved.

"Okay. I'll be as quick as I can. Lily, get his shoe off him… And put something cold on his ankle, if you can…"

Lily rolled her eyes.

"I may not be an Auror _or_ a Healer, but I know _that_ much! Good luck, Rosie. And bring him back," she finished under her breath, as she watched her cousin disappear into the darkness.

Then she turned with a sigh, and sat down next to Louis. Cuthbert whined at Rose's sudden departure, and wriggled against Lily's hand, so she cast a quick silencing charm on him before he could start barking after the straying member of the pack. Then she surveyed him gloomily.

"Cuddy, you're an idiot. What did you want to come for? This is _not_ the place for dogs."

Louis chuckled weakly.

"I'm sure Sirius would agree with you."

"But what am I going to do with him?" Lily exclaimed, "I can't let him go, because he'll take off after Rose, and I can't do anything while I'm holding onto him."

Louis thought for a moment, then pulled off the leather plait he was wearing round his wrist.

"What are you like at Transfiguration? Can you make some sort of lead out of that? I'd do it myself, but I'm not sure I can concentrate well enough at the moment."

"Good idea," Lily looked relieved, and with a small effort, turned the bracelet into a plaited lead, complete with metal clasp. She clipped it to Cuthbert's collar, and tethered the other end to the fence.

"Sorry, boy," she told him, rumpling his ears, and then she turned to look at Louis, "How bad's your ankle?"

"Not quite as bad as it was at first," he said, "But bad enough. This is so fucking stupid! Of all the things that could have happened, I go and twist my bloody ankle!"

She gave him a half smile.

"Just one of those things, isn't it? Come on, let's get your shoe off, before it swells up."

As gently as she could, she undid the laces and eased it off. He tensed as it came off, but otherwise made no movement. She slipped his sock off too, and looked at his ankle, which was already starting to turn puffy and discoloured. She thought for a moment, then cast a freezing charm on his sock. It froze as rigid as a board, and she sighed.

"Overdid it a bit, didn't you?" Louis said, with a slight smile. She stuck her tongue out at him, and thawed it a little, then laid it across his ankle. He yelped at the cold, but relaxed as the feeling gave the pain some relief.

For a few moments, they sat in silence, Lily stroking the head of a silent but sadly confused Cuthbert.

Sobriety had come suddenly and she was beginning to realise what exactly she had persuaded the others to do. Merlin, had she been mad? Why had they not waited for her parents to come home? Why had they not simply contacted the Ministry? Nobody would have minded, for an emergency like that. In fact, her father was usually glad of interruptions when it came to formal functions. Why on earth had they panicked and behaved so stupidly?

Because they had been drunk, she thought with resignation. And she had been thinking of nothing but getting Sirius back as soon as possible. Merlin, she had even been thinking that if they could get him back before anyone knew he had gone, they'd never need to tell anyone. She knew that she wasn't to blame for the way the evening had turned out, but still, her parents had left her to look after things for the evening. Damn Jamie and his stupid alcohol! If he hadn't decided that getting drunk would be a good idea, none of it would have happened. She glanced across at her cousin, whose face was tense with pain, and guilt smote her again. She had got Rose and Louis into this too, and now Louis was hurt…

"I'm sorry," she said, in a small voice. Louis seemed to know what she was thinking, and shook his head.

"Lil, you didn't make us come. We're adults; we can make our own decisions. And we could even have stopped you, if we'd really wanted to. We maybe didn't make the most sensible decision, but hopefully it'll all be all right."

"Never let me make decisions when I'm drunk," she said dolefully.

"It wasn't just because you were drunk, was it?" Louis said, after a pause.

She looked at him, startled.

"What do you mean?"

"Well…" he glanced calculatingly at her, "You were in a bit of a panic…"

"Because I was drunk," she said, firmly.

"And because you care about him?" Louis suggested.

"Well, of course I do," she said crossly, "He's my friend…"

"Lily," Louis interrupted, "When I asked you before…"

"I was drunk," she said, feebly.

"So being drunk makes you a liar now?"

She sighed.

"What I said was 'I don't know.' And I don't. I know even less now I've sobered up. It's too complicated. I can't deal with it. I can't do complicated…"

There was a short pause.

"Feelings tend to _be_ complicated," Louis said, eventually, in mild tones, "Name any couple you know, and I bet they'd tell you there've been complications, and worries, and times when it's all seemed too much… It's dealing with those things that shows that a relationship's worth working at."

"None of the couples I know have had to deal with falling for a playboy, who also happens to have come from the past and is their dad's godfather. Not to mention the fact that he's just lost his best friends, along with everything else he knows, and spent five weeks in the worst place on earth…"

"No," agreed Louis, "I'll grant you that. But… when you say he's a playboy… you mean you don't think he's serious about you?"

Lily bit her lip and looked at her cousin. She had always been fairly close to Louis – they had grown up together – but she had never talked to him about this sort of thing. When they were little, Louis and James had played with Rose and Albus, while Lily had tended to go off more with Roxy and Molly. As they had grown up, Louis had been very much James' friend, and she wouldn't have told him anything she didn't want her brother to know. But something told her that he had a bit more discretion than that, these days. It occurred to her that he probably didn't talk about this sort of thing with James at all. James was completely accepting of Louis' sexuality, and had never apparently let it come between them at all, even when Louis had first come out, as a teenager. But he could hardly be expected to talk about boys with Louis.

Her cousin's blue eyes (a very different blue from Sirius', she could not help noticing; Louis' were light, bright blue, like his mother's, while Sirius' were almost grey) were looking at her with genuine sympathy, and she sighed.

"I know he isn't serious about me," she admitted quietly, "I think he's fond of me, as a friend… but anything else… no, he isn't serious. Sorry, that wasn't supposed to be a pun! But he's never been serious about a relationship in his life. He runs through girlfriends as if they were water. It doesn't mean anything; it's just a bit of fun, and some good sex…"

"Lil," Louis interrupted again, "No offence, or anything… but substitute the word 'girlfriends' with 'boyfriends' and you'd just have described yourself. Or at least, that's the person you've always claimed to be."

"I know," Lily groaned, "That's why I don't know, Louis. This is _why_ I don't do serious relationships. Because I don't know how. I don't know how to feel, or what to do, and I always fall for the most unsuitable person I can find… Oh Merlin, Louis, _why_ does it have to be complicated? Why can't it just be the way it always used to be; the way it was with everyone else? I don't _want_ a serious relationship! I liked things the way they were!"

"Did you?" Louis' eyes were uncharacteristically grave, "Did you really want it to be like that forever, Lily?"

"I don't know," she said, again, helplessly, "I don't think about _forever_. I just think about now."

"But 'now' isn't enough, with Sirius?" he questioned.

She shrugged.

"I don't know. I suppose… I'm just scared it might not be…"

"And you're scared of getting hurt?" Louis's voice was very quiet.

Lily nodded, a sob catching in her throat, and for a moment, she did not trust herself to speak. Louis sighed.

"Well… there's not a lot I can say, Lil. I'm not the best person to be giving romantic advice, really. And I don't know what you feel about him, or what he feels about you. If you're sure he doesn't feel the same way… well, then, I suppose you're right to be wary of it. Maybe it would be best to… I don't know… nip it in the bud, you know? Try not to think that way."

Lily nodded.

"I know. I think I was doing that, without even realising it. I honestly thought… Louis, can I tell you something I haven't old a single other person? And will you promise not to tell anyone, especially James?"

"Erm… yeah, I guess so," Louis sounded a bit bemused by this request.

"When I was in the past, last summer, I slept with Sirius."

Louis choked at this revelation, and stared at his cousin in shock.

"You… what? You mean, slept, as in _had sex_?"

"Of course," said Lily irritably, "What else would I mean?"

"Well," Louis stared at her, lost for words, "Shit, Lily. I wasn't expecting _that_. I mean, I thought you two might have, you know, shared the odd moment or something. But… Merlin, Lil. I hate to say it, but what were you _thinking_?"

"Spare me the lecture," Lily said wearily, "This is exactly why I didn't tell anyone. We _weren't_ thinking; I'd have thought that much was obvious. I know how stupid it was. But you know, at the time, it genuinely meant nothing at all. It was just… something that happened. We were back to being friends afterwards.

"It was only… all the things that happened after that… changed it, I suppose. I don't even know… I don't when it changed. I kept on thinking it didn't mean anything. I couldn't stop thinking about him all the time, after I came back, but that was because I felt guilty, not because… It was because I'd… you know… shared stuff with him, and then I betrayed him. But it honestly wasn't until he disappeared in the garden just now that I realised… it didn't quite mean _nothing_ after all. But you're right… I shouldn't let it turn into anything."

Something told her that it might be a little late for that, and also that it might be easier said than done. Sirius' damn' libido might get in the way a bit, too. It wasn't going to help if he kept responding to her the way he had when they had been sitting on the step. She might have to avoid 'alone moments.' Of course, she thought with a sudden sinking feeling, that was assuming that they could find him and bring him back.

That thought brought her mind back to more immediate matters, and she looked at Louis.

"How's your ankle?"

Louis moved it slightly, and pulled a face.

"Well, it's not quite as bad as it was. But it's going to be fucking sore tomorrow," he glanced at her, "Lil… you haven't slept with him again, have you? Since he came to our time, I mean?"

She shook her head, and he looked relieved.

"Good. I mean, I'm not going to do a James and try and tell you how to live your life, but… you should probably avoid doing that."

She nodded.

"You don't have to tell me that. Don't worry about me, Louis. I'm just emotional right now. It's probably more than half because I'm worried about him. When this is all over, and I've had a good sleep, I'll probably wonder what on earth was the matter with me. I'm not the type to get my heart broken," she looked around her, and changed the subject, "I hope Rose hurries up."

"Hm," he agreed. There was a pause.

"Lil?" he said, eventually. She looked at him, her face pale in the darkness. His eyes sparkled slightly, in something like amusement.

"Before, when you said you _always_ fell for the most unsuitable person… has it happened before, then?"

Her lips almost twitched into a smile, but she shook her head.

"There was something that happened back when I was at school… But I'm afraid that one's staying buried forever. Sorry Lou, you've had enough secrets from me for one night… But I do wonder what's happened to Rose."

* * *

Rose had spoken the truth when she had said that she knew how to move without being seen. For all her height, and her bright clothes and hair, it would have been a sharp-eyed Muggle who spotted her from the house windows as she slipped down the street, keeping in the shadows.

Damn Sirius! Where was he? He _had_ to have been somewhere close by when they had arrived. How could he not have noticed them?

But then, he had been almost as drunk as James, so anything was possible. Idly, Rose wondered what James had been shouting about when he had gone to find Lily and Sirius outside. He had gone out, despite Rose and Louis trying to stop him, to apologise for being insensitive. But by the time Rose had arrived, he had been apologising for something entirely different…

If it had been any other young man, Rose would have had no doubt what he and Lily had been up to, or what Jamie had been shouting about. But even Lily wouldn't… would she?

But there was no time to think of that now. She stood on the corner of the street, her mind working frantically. If only there was some spell she could use to find him. She had already tried _Homenun Revelio_, but why would he have concealed himself from them, anyway? She had no idea how far away he might be. Wand range? What did that even _mean_? It all depended on what you were _doing_ with your wand! _Accio_, for instance, could work over really quite long distances. A shame _Accio_ didn't work on people. She tried it anyway, in case it worked on dogs, but without much hope. Sirius wasn't _really_ a dog, no matter what form he was in.

Rose looked idly at a parked car by the roadside. It did not look like the cars of her own time, she thought, and then she looked at it more closely, a puzzled look on her face. It did not look quite as she'd have expected a car of the 1980s to look. But then, she didn't know a great deal about 1980s cars. Rose's mother was Muggle-born, and she knew all about cars (she could even drive one, thanks to Grandad Granger, who had taught her) but she knew nothing at all about their history. You needed Lily for that sort of thing; her cousin would probably recognise a car belonging to 1981.

Voices made her flatten her back against a tree, and two teenagers rounded the corner, talking in low voices. They stopped and looked round, and Rose shrank further back, realising with a shock that the two were carrying brooms. In fact, one of them was doing more than carrying it; she was riding it, sitting sideways and floating a few feet off the ground beside the boy. What were they thinking, the little idiots? This was a Muggle district! What were they even _doing_ here? If there were witches and wizards around, they were in more danger than they had thought. She hoped to goodness that Sirius had had the sense to stay in his dog form, wherever he was.

Having no wish to meet an adolescent witch and wizard (they looked as though they could hardly be of age), Rose cast a non-verbal disillusionment charm on herself, and instantly blended in with the tree behind her. Better safe than sorry. But the kids had not moved, and they were looking around as though they were waiting for someone. They also looked as though they were trying to be surreptitious. Just her luck to have bumped into a couple of teenagers up to something.

Then the boy looked right into the shadows under the tree, exactly where Rose was standing, although he could not possibly have spotted her, in this light and under the disillusionment charm… And, for all her training, Rose could not prevent a gulp of shock escaping her. It was not a loud noise, but both kids had pricked their ears up.

"Hello?" the boy called, very softly, "Is anyone there?"

And Rose, with a terrible feeling of foreboding, looked into a pair of eyes that were very familiar indeed.

* * *

_The large dog was flung heavily against a dustbin as it rolled over, paws desperately scrabbling for a hold. It yelped at the impact, and crouched to the ground, ears and tail down, as the wind and the light subsided._

_For a moment, there was silent, then the door of the house was flung open, and a light went on, making the dog cower back further._

"_David?" a woman's voice could be heard calling, sounding a little frightened, "What was it? What's happening?"_

"_I don't know," the man was standing in the open doorway, looking out in a puzzled way, "I can't see anything. Strange. Hold on…"_

_He came cautiously down the path, and jumped as he spotted the dog._

"_Oh!" He took a step back, for the dog was really quite big. But it made no move, only crouched by the dustbins. It looked, the man thought, as though it might not be quite well. He held out a hand._

"_Hey, boy. Where did you come from? Was it you making all that racket?"_

_He did not expect an answer, of course; he was merely talking softly, in a rhetorical way, to reassure the animal. The dog still did not move. He wondered whether it was hurt._

"_David?" the woman had appeared in the doorway now._

"_It's all right, Maureen," the man called, "It's only a dog. Stray, by the looks of him."_

"_Is it all right?" the woman sounded concerned, as she came down the path behind the man, "Oh! It's huge!"_

"_Yes, but it doesn't seem aggressive. Just frightened. I'm not sure what's wrong with it."_

_She appeared beside him, carefully styled fair hair framing her face, and they looked down at the dog, who staggered to its feet, and tried to back a few steps away, but collapsed again_

"_It doesn't seem well," said the woman, Maureen._

"_No," David agreed, "We ought to get a vet to look at it, I suppose."_

"_Or find out who it belongs to," Maureen suggested, "I'm not so sure it's a stray. Its coat looks quite well-cared for. Is it wearing a collar?"_

"_I don't know."_

_David approached the dog, still cautious._

_It was on its feet again instantly, and trying to get away, but it was cornered by the dustbins, and it didn't seem able to move properly; it staggered sideways, and seemed to be struggling to make all its legs do what it wanted them to._

"_Bloody hell," Maureen commented, "It really isn't well. It's walking as if it's drunk!"_

_David chuckled slightly._

"_A drunk dog. Unlikely, I think. Hey, boy. It's okay. We won't hurt you. Come on…"_

_He knelt down on the ground, and reached a hand out to the dog, but it simply stared at him._

"_Odd," he commented, "I've never seen a dog with eyes that colour before."_

"_Must be some sort of genetic thing," the woman said, vaguely, "Hold on. I've got an idea." She hurried back up the path towards the house and disappeared inside. The man called David sat and looked quizzically at the dog. _

"_Well, this is a turn up for the books. We were talking about getting another dog the other day, but we certainly didn't expect one to arrive in the garden. I wonder if you've got people searching for you somewhere." He stretched out a hand to the dog, but it did not sniff the hand, as he had expected, but simply looked rigidly at it, its eyes seeming slightly dazed. Feeling slightly daring, David placed the hand on the dog's head. It flinched, but did not growl or snap._

_Maureen appeared again, holding something._

"_I found Tessie's old lead the other day," she said proudly, "D'you think we could have a go…? We should probably get him into the house if we can, so he doesn't run off…"_

"_It's worth a try," the man agreed, holding out his hand. The woman put the lead into it. It was a choke-chain style lead, with lead and collar in one piece. It was not until David was approaching with the loop held out to go over the dog's head, that the dog seemed to realise what was happening, and reacted with a violent jerk away. But David was swift, and the loop was over the dog's head, and only pulled tight when it jerked away. It shook its head desperately, growling and pawing at the chain around its neck._

"_Hey, hey!" David called, reassuringly, "It's okay, boy. We won't hurt you. Come on, boy. We just want to get you inside…"_

_The dog appeared to give up the fight, and sat very still, looking warily at them._

"_Come on," David gave the lead a tug, and stood up encouragingly._

_The dog pulled back for a few moments, and then, as David persisted with gentle pressure, appeared to give up, and reluctantly followed the pair up the path, still stumbling slightly. _

"_D'you think he might have been poisoned or something?" Maureen said, anxiously, watching the dog's uneven gait and lack of co-ordination. David looked concerned._

"_It looks a bit like it, doesn't it? If so, there's probably a limit to how much we can do. We won't get a vet until the morning now."_

_As they entered the house, a small figure appeared at the bottom of the stairs._

"_Mummy? Daddy? What's happening? I heard a big loud noise outside…"_

"_It's all right, Joe, sweetie," Maureen said soothingly, "It was just a dog, knocking the bins over."_

"_Oooh!" The small boy spotted the dog and his face lit up, "A doggie! Are we going to keep him?"_

_He trundled forwards, arms open to greet the dog, who backed away hastily and fell over the boot rack, scattering shoes in all directions._

"_No, Joe," David put a hand out and stopped his son, "Wait a bit. He's not very well. Don't go rushing up to him. Not all dogs are as friendly as Tessie was."_

_The little boy, who could not have been more than five or six, pouted. _

"_Why is he not friendly? Will he bite me?"_

"_Well, I don't think so," David said, "But it's better to be safe. You might just scare him, and then he might bite without meaning to."_

_Joe fixed the dog with wide brown eyes._

"_You won't bite me, will you, doggie?" he said, ingratiatingly, "I think it's a nice dog, Daddy. Why is it sick?"_

"_We're not sure, sweetie," Maureen said, "But I think you should go back to bed now…"_

"_Will it die?" the boy interrupted._

"_Well…" the two adults exchanged glances, "It's always possible, love. But we're going to give him a bed in the kitchen, and phone the vet in the morning."_

_The boy held out a hand to the dog._

"_Poor doggie. Why does he have to sleep in the kitchen? He could sleep on my bed…"_

"_No, Joe," said Maureen firmly, "Certainly not. You don't know where he's been. He might have fleas, or anything…" The dog gave an indignant pull on the lead at this, almost as if it had understood._

"_If it doesn't die, can we keep it?" Joe persisted. Again, his parents looked at each other._

"_Well…" David said, gently, "Probably not, Joe. I know you miss Tessie, but this dog probably has some owners who love him very much, and are looking for him right now. We'll have to give him back, you know."_

_At David's words, the dog gave a slight whine, deep in its throat._

"_Come on, love," Maureen took Joe's hand, and led him back up the stairs. As he departed, his voice could be heard, floating down the stairs._

"_But if he doesn't have any owners who are looking for him, _then_ can we keep him…?"_

_

* * *

_

_The dog was given a blanket and installed in the corner of the kitchen, with a bowl of water, which he drank gratefully, and a plate of cold, leftover mince, which he turned his nose up at. Then David and Maureen carefully locked the back door, closed the kitchen door, and departed for bed._

_As soon as it was clear that they were gone, the dog disappeared and a dark-haired young man appeared in its place. _

_Sirius looked around the kitchen – the same kitchen he had eaten dinner in, with Lily, Rose and Molly, only a few hours ago – and ran his hand over his eyes, with a soft groan. Well, this was a bloody mess! His head was still spinning unpleasantly, although the water had helped. He tried the back door, but it was locked and he had no idea what had been done with the key. He could not go wandering around the house; if he was caught, they would probably ring the Muggle police. Sirius had had a run in with the Muggle police before; he had got away, but they had taken his name, he remembered. He had no idea how Muggle criminal records worked, but it was possible that he already had one._

_And, as he was presumably back in 1981, he certainly had a Wizarding criminal record. The thought made his blood run cold, and he realised that, even if the door had not been locked, he did not particularly want to run around outside. He was safer in a Muggle kitchen, as a dog. Did they know about his Animagus abilities? Surely Remus would have told them by now… but why should he, if he thought that Sirius was safely locked up in Azkaban? Sirius' heart clenched at the thought of Remus. In 2028, it had been different; it had been as if he had been existing in a different world; one in which everyone knew him to be innocent. But here… Remus was here somewhere, and he thought that Sirius was a murderer… that he had betrayed James…_

_All the nightmares that had seemed more distant when he had been in the future, came flooding back in full force. And, safe or not, Sirius did _not_ like being shut behind locked doors…_

_There was a sudden scuffle at the door into the hallway, and Sirius transformed instantly as the door opened. The small figure of Joe stood there, blinking at the big black dog in the darkness of the kitchen._

"_Hello," the little boy whispered, "I came down to see you… because I don't think you'll bite me, will you?" The dog simply stood and looked at him, and the little boy came into the kitchen and closed the door carefully behind him. He looked steadily at the dog._

"_I seen that, you know." There was silence. The dog sat down on the floor and continued to look at him._

"_I seen you," the boy said again, sounding a little frightened, but obstinate, "When I opened the door, you was a man. And then you was a dog again."_

_Still the dog made no sign, except a hopeful wag of the tail. Apparently taking this for encouragement, Joe came right up to him and examined his face carefully. He lifted the shaggy hair and looked into the dog's eyes._

"_You've got funny eyes, for a dog," he said, "And I know I'm right. Because I _seen_ you. I seen you arrive as well. In the garden. I was looking out the window, and there was a big light, and you came out the middle of it. Are you Doctor Who?"_

_The dog tilted its head to one side, in a confused fashion. Joe sighed._

"_No, I didn't really think you could be. 'Cause I never saw the Doctor turn into a dog. And you didn't have a Tardis. But the Doctor can do just about anything…" He looked from side to side in a conspiratorial way, "But anyway… I really came down to say you don't have to sleep down here, where it's all cold. Mummy and Daddy are asleep now. You can come upstairs with me."_

_He grasped a handful of black fur and moved towards the door. The dog resisted, with a slight whine. Joe looked down at it._

"_Are you worried about being in trouble? It's okay. Mummy and Daddy'll be cross in the morning, but it'll be too late by then. They won't be _very_ cross. And not at all with you, so you don't need to be scared about that…"_

_The dog gave another whine, that might almost have been described as scornful, and allowed itself to be led from the room and upstairs._

"_Ssh," Joe told him, "You have to be quiet, or they'll make you go downstairs again…" He opened a door, and led the dog into a room that, in fifty years, would belong to Lily Potter, and closed the door behind them. Then he looked at the dog and took a deep breath._

"_Now, _please_, be a man again, and tell me who you are…"_

_

* * *

_

**Well, I know the answer to the last question, but there's obviously lots that's still up in the air. There have been a few suggestions of different things that could happen to them all, and times they could end up in, and some of them are going to be used… so if you have any ideas, do let me know! **

**And also… is it too slow? Too much talking and not enough action? Although I think I've finished with the long, deep conversations for a little while, so there should be more action, and a few more answers, in the next chapter.**


	18. Time Travellers All

**Disclaimer: I do not own JK Rowling's characters or world**

**A/N: Okay, you know the drill. Thanks and various home-baking to my reviewers of the last chapter, gaia v, arwenjanlilylyra, ermireallydon'tcare, HPFanFicLuvr, and new reviewer RoxyBabyX. I love you guys, and everyone else who's bothered to get this far. **

**This chapter was a bit of a struggle – for some reason it didn't want to come out. It finally came together, but I'm afraid it might feel a bit chaotic and messy. Sorry if that's the case, but I was battling through writer's block, and trying to do some revision at the same time. Only one exam to go - and that's literally the last exam I ever have to sit in my life unless I go mad some day and decide to do a Masters!**

** Some answers in this chapter…**

**

* * *

**

For a moment, Rose could not breathe. What the hell was going on? Who were these teenagers? A horrible suspicion, which had first been implanted in her mind when she had seen the strange car, suddenly crystallised.

Forty seven years… in the wrong direction?

Could they possibly have arrived in Barnstaple in… her brain did the maths rapidly… _2075_? It would explain why Sirius had not been there to greet them.

It might also explain why this boy looked extraordinarily like her cousin James.

"I know you're there," the boy said, a little louder, "Even if I can't see you. So you may as well come out…"

Rose found herself looking at the end of the boy's wand. Hmm. She wasn't convinced that the boy was actually of age, but if he was like Jamie in things other than looks, he wouldn't let that stop him. Fortunately, her own wand was still in her hand.

"_Finite Incantatum,_" the boy said, confidently, but Rose was ready for this, and blocked it silently. She thought she was probably going to have to show herself (for one thing, curiosity was getting the better of her) but she wasn't letting a kid like that defeat her so easily. _Especially_ if he was some spawn of Jamie's. The boy's eyes narrowed as his spell had no effect.

"I know you're there," he said, sounding slightly less confident, "And I know who you are. And I know you're going to show yourself eventually, so you may as well do it now."

Rose rolled her eyes. The boy was still pointing his wand at her. Had nobody ever told him that it was a bad idea to threaten somebody you couldn't see?

She moved so fast that she was simply a blur of air. In the blink of an eye, and without a single word, she had disarmed him, and had her own wand pressed against his throat. Then she took the disillusionment charm off herself.

Two teenagers blinked at her.

Rose sensed a movement, and pointed the boy's wand at the girl behind her.

"Don't even think about it!" she warned, without even looking round, "I could take the two of you down with my eyes closed."

The girl gulped, and lowered the wand she had raised. Rose felt a flash of amusement. Stupid little idiots. Rose Weasley had gained top marks in all her Auror exams, both theory and practical; a couple of kids who looked like they weren't out of school weren't much of a threat. They didn't know who they were messing with!

Or did they?

"So," she said, conversationally, stepping away from him, but keeping both wands trained on the two teenagers, "Why don't you tell me who you are, and, more importantly, how you knew I was there?"

They eyed her nervously, then the boy squared his shoulders, in exactly the way James did when he was preparing to face up to something, Rose thought with amusement.

"My name's Seth," he said, "And this," he indicated the girl, who appeared to be the younger of the two by a couple of years or so, "is Francesca."

Rose waited expectantly, but the two were silent.

"And…" she prompted, "You knew I was there… how?"

"Because you told us you were going to be," the boy said simply.

* * *

"_Joe! Come on sweetie, time to get up! Oh, Joe…!"_

_Maureen Ashby looked down at her son's bed, and folded her arms._

"_Joseph Ashby, what did I tell you about having that dog on your bed?" But there was amused resignation in her voice, and the little boy, wide awake in an instant, smiled hopefully up at her._

"_He was all cold in the kitchen…"_

"_Oh, Joe. He was perfectly all right in the kitchen. I hope to goodness he _doesn't _have fleas!"_

"_He doesn't! He's very clean!" Joe insisted, sitting up in bed, "An' he's sick. You shouldn't make him sleep down there in the cold."_

_Maureen looked at the dog, who opened his eyes at the noise, and whimpered pathetically. His eyes closed again, and Maureen looked worried. The animal's whole attitude suggested abject pain and sickness. Its ears were right down, and its eyes miserable, before it closed them again, and it lay slumped on the bed, not moving at all except to curl up a bit tighter, its nose on its paws._

"_Oh dear," she said, "Joe, love, he really doesn't look well. I think we should ring the vet up."_

_Joe looked at the dog._

"_Oh. I think he's all right, Mummy. He _was_ all right. Last night."_

"_No, he wasn't, Joe," Maureen said gently, "He could hardly walk, and he wouldn't eat."_

"_But later…" Joe persisted, "When he came upstairs…" he broke off._

"_Come down, Joe," Maureen still spoke gently, "Come and get your breakfast, and we'll ring the vet."_

_

* * *

_

"_It's very strange," the balding, middle-aged man said, in puzzled tones, "I'm not seeing the symptoms of poisoning, although that was what you seemed to be describing earlier. There doesn't seem to be anything terribly wrong with him physically."_

"_He's much better than he was this morning," Maureen hastened to assure the vet, feeling a little foolish._

"_Well, he's clearly in distress," the vet agreed, "But I can't really work out why. He's not showing classic symptoms of nausea. You say he hasn't been trying to eat grass or anything?"_

"_No, not at all," Maureen shook her head._

"_Well, that's what dogs do if they need to be sick. I can't understand it. He's a little dehydrated, and he seems disorientated, but other than that… there's really nothing wrong with him. But he does seem rather under the weather. I'll take a blood sample, because it's just possible that he's been poisoned, as you thought. Although without knowing what it was he ate, it would be fairly difficult to treat him. I don't really think that it's anything serious though. Hopefully, he'll simply pull through it._

_"The really odd thing is his general condition. He's in a much better state than I would expect in a stray. His coat seems clean and healthy, and he's thin, but not starving. If I didn't know better, you know, I'd say he'd _been_ on the loose a little while ago, but had started to recover. He's got some scars on him – looks like he might have been knocked around a bit, poor fellow - but they're all healed up. As I say, the main thing actually wrong with him physically seems to be that he's dehydrated. So give him plenty of water and see how he goes. I don't quite know what to make of it."_

_

* * *

_

"_I thought of a name for him," Joe said, as he ate his lunch._

"_Oh, love," Maureen looked worried, "I'm not sure that's a good idea. We aren't going to keep him, you know."_

"_I know," Joe agreed, sadly, "Because his friends will be looking for him. But we should still call him something, while he's here."_

_They had, eventually, decided to leave the dog upstairs, in Joe's room. After all, he had been there all night; it would have seemed a little pointless to move him downstairs, when he was clearly comfortable on Joe's bed. If comfortable was the right word, considering that he still seemed very unwell, and was refusing to move. So they had given him a large bowl of water, and shut the door on him._

"_Well… I suppose so," Maureen said doubtfully, "But he'll probably have a name already, Joe, sweetie. So he won't answer to your new name…"_

"_He will," Joe said positively, "I know he will."_

"_What did you want to call him?"_

_Joe beamed._

"_Sirius."_

"_Serious?" Maureen looked puzzled, "Why Serious, Joe?"_

"_Not _Serious_!" Joe said, as if speaking to somebody incredibly stupid, rolling his eyes, "Sirius! It's a star. The dog star!"_

"_Oh…" Maureen looked very startled, "Sirius. I see. Yes, that's right, love; it is the dog star. But where did you hear that?"_

"_Someone told me," Joe said, vaguely._

_Maureen frowned._

"_Someone told you? Someone at school, you mean?"_

"_No," said Joe, even more vaguely, "Not at school…"_

_Maureen stared at her son in a very puzzled way, but he was placidly eating bread and cheese, and did not notice._

_

* * *

_

They seemed to have been waiting a long time. Lily had got up and walked around, but Louis could not, and was starting to look fairly cold, considering that he was only wearing a t-shirt. They could each tell that the other was a bit worried, but they said nothing.

Suddenly, a familiar voice said, "Well…" behind them. Lily spun round and found Rose standing close by them. The expression on her face was somewhere between exasperation, worry and amusement, and Lily's heart sank slightly. It did not look as though Rose had found Sirius.

"Well, I suppose it's as much our fault as yours," Rose went on, her arms folded across her chest and her voice sounding almost thoughtful, "But next time you say 'I'm sure I can do it,' please remind me not to believe you."

Lily and Louis both stared at her, open-mouthed.

"What d'you mean?" Louis asked, eventually, "D'you mean… we're not in 1981?"

"That's exactly what I mean," said Rose, grimly, "Have a think, Lou. Just like we _ought_ to have done before we tried this whole crazy thing. We've just done _exactly what Sirius did_ with the Time Turner. But what exactly _did_ Sirius do?"

"Rose, for Merlin's sake!" Louis exclaimed, exasperatedly, as Lily's mind clicked into gear and a horrible suspicion began to form, "This isn't a fucking exam! Just tell us what's happened!"

Instead of replying, Rose glanced over her shoulder.

"Come on, then," she said, impatiently, and her cousins realised, for the first time, that she was not alone. There was a boy and a girl, some years younger than they were, following behind her.

"Meet Seth and Francesca."

* * *

_The dog Joe had christened 'Sirius' surveyed the bowl of dog food with a little dismay. It was not that it would taste disgusting; his dog taste buds would quite enjoy it. But his human mind rebelled against the idea. On the other hand, he was hungry…His terrible hangover had worn off to a throbbing ache behind his eyes, and his stomach felt empty. In the cold light of sobriety, everything seemed a great deal worse._

_He was now regretting revealing himself to Joe last night. Then, there had seemed to be no other option. Joe had been in no doubt about what he had seen, and it had seemed more sensible to transform, and impress upon the child that it was a secret, than to remain silent and risk the boy babbling everything out to everyone he met. His Muggle parents would not, of course, believe it, but there were witches and wizards in Barnstaple, and stories could spread quickly…_

_Now, however, he was not so sure. Joe had seemed to understand that it had to be a secret, but he was too little to be reliable._

_Sirius ate the dog food quickly (eating very quickly was a dog-ability that Sirius sometimes appreciated) and tried not to think about what he was eating. Being a dog was less fun when you were at the mercy of Muggles who actually believed you _were_ a dog._

_He was relieved that the man called a 'vet' had done nothing more unpleasant than sticking a needle into him. Why he had done this, Sirius was not sure, but it seemed to be some Muggle thing called a 'blood test.' When this had first been mentioned, Sirius had been horrified. It sounded like something horrible that You-Know-Who would come up with to detect Muggle-borns or something, and at the very least, he had thought that it would instantly show that his blood was human not canine. _

_However, nothing terrible had happened, and the man had gone away, puzzled, but with no inkling of the truth, thank Merlin. Apparently, the idea of a dog with a hangover was ridiculous enough not even to have occurred to him._

"_Can I take Sirius outside?" Joe demanded. His parents looked at each other. The dog certainly seemed much better, and appeared perfectly safe and friendly, and quite well-trained._

"_The fences are all secure," Maureen pointed out._

_David nodded._

"_All right, love. But only in the garden, okay? You mustn't open the gate at all."_

_Joe nodded solemnly, and Sirius found himself alone with the little boy again, looking at a garden that he had seen before, although it was not at all the thing that Ginny Potter took such pride over. It seemed that the Ashbys weren't gardeners. It was simply a long rectangle of rather straggly grass, with a shrubbery in the corner. _

_Sirius tried to work out what time of year it was. Had he returned to exactly the same time he had left? Or had some time gone by? The leaves were off the trees, but that didn't tell him much. _

"_Come on," Joe urged him, eyes sparkling, and led him down to the tangle of bushes, many of which were evergreen. Joe pushed his way among them to a small space in the middle, close to the trunk of a box bush that had grown beyond the neatly trimmed thing it had presumably once been. The brambles and branches met overhead, and even Joe could hardly stand up there, so they crouched on the hard earth. Joe looked expectantly at Sirius, who sighed, knowing what the boy was waiting for, and transformed. _

_There was very little room for a tall young man in among the bushes, but he had to admit that it was a good hiding place. Nobody would see him unless they crawled right in with them._

"_This is my special place," Joe said, proudly._

"_It's pretty good," Sirius said, approvingly, but his mind was elsewhere, "Joe. What's the date?"_

_Joe frowned._

"_I dunno."_

"_Oh. Well… is it still 1981?"_

"_Course it is!" Joe said, surprised._

"_And… is it Christmas yet?"_

"_No," Joe shook his head, eyes sparkling, "But it's _nearly_ Christmas! At school, we're doing a Christmas play. I'm going to be a shepherd. I have to say 'Let's go to Bethlehem and see the Christ Child.' Mummy and Daddy are coming to watch. But Miss Wilson says we're not allowed to wave and shout out to our Mummies and Daddies."_

_Sirius stared at him, trying to make sense of this._

"_Oh…is there a special kind of play for Christmas then?"_

"_Yes, of course!" Joe stared at him, "Didn't you ever do a Christmas play?"_

"_Er… no. I don't think I went to the right sort of school." Of course, he hadn't been to school at all until he went to Hogwarts. He looked at Joe's happy face, and found himself almost envious of the little Muggle boy. He would never go to Hogwarts… would never do magic, or play Quidditch or any of the other things that made up Sirius' world. But he had parents who would come to watch him speak a single line in a children's play. Sirius had never had that. _

"_I thought _everyone_ had Christmas plays," Joe continued, innocently, "What _did_ your school do for Christmas?"_

"_Oh… well, we had a party usually," Sirius said, vaguely, remembering the pre-holiday affairs in the Gryffindor Common Room._

_Joe beamed._

"_Oh, we have a party too. That's on Friday. We play Musical Chairs, and What's the Time Mr Wolf, and Cat and Mouse, and Fruit Salad… Did you play those too?"_

"_Um… no, I'm afraid not," Sirius was feeling distinctly out of his depth with this conversation. He had never paid much attention in Muggle Studies, and had dropped it after OWLs (he had mainly taken it to annoy his parents, in which he had been entirely successful) but he was fairly sure that none of these games had been covered. Although he wondered, with a grin, what Remus' reaction would have been if anyone had suggested a game called 'What's the Time, Mr Wolf?'. He rather wished he had known about it, just so he _could_ have suggested it__. _

"_I'm the best at Musical Chairs," Joe chattered on, "Nobody can get the chairs quicker than me. Do you know how to play Tag?"_

_That was one Sirius did know, to his relief, although he was fairly sure that the Muggle version must be different; the one he knew involved brooms. He nodded._

"_Yeah, I used to play that one with my friends."_

_Joe beamed, and then frowned._

"_I wish you could play it with me. But we can't play in here, and you can't be a man outside."_

_Sirius' lips twitched._

"_No, we'd struggle to play Tag in here," he agreed, "But you know, kid, I can't keep doing this, even when we're hidden. Suppose your mum or dad came out and heard me talking…"_

_Joe stuck out his lower lip._

"_But I want to talk to you."_

"_Hey, I thought you liked dogs," Sirius said gently, "I make a pretty good dog, you know."_

_Joe smiled a little bit._

"_Do you really have to go away? I bet Mummy and Daddy'd let you stay. They say no, but they really want a dog."_

_Sirius was silent for a moment. He really didn't know what he was going to do. He was stuck here for now. He had no wand, and it was midwinter; he wouldn't survive for long alone. He could, of course, try and get to Dumbledore, but he didn't rate his chances of getting to the north of Scotland very highly. The only other person he knew of who believed in his innocence was Odette Irvine, and she was even further away, in the south of France. _

_He was entirely reliant on someone from 2028 finding some way of getting him back. Would they…? Surely they would! They had the Time Turner. They would surely try and get to him; they would not just leave him here. So long as they could find a way of controlling it, so that they got to the right time… He didn't like to think of what might happen if they could not. _

_He thought of Lily and the others; they would have got a shock when he vanished. Would he ever see them again? Would he ever see _Lily_ again?_

_He found that the thought that he might not hurt quite a lot. Not as much as the thought of never seeing James again, but quite a lot, all the same. He remembered the last few moments… sitting on the step with Lily… had he been imagining it, or had there been a return of the sort of warmth she had shown him when she was in 1980 with him? _

_And then there was James – the other James. He and Louis were a bit too much like the Marauders themselves for complete comfort – under normal circumstances, Sirius would have found friends and kindred spirits in the two of them, but now the memories just hurt a little bit too much. _

_But something told Sirius that James would not be very happy if he knew that Sirius had ever slept with James' little sister. He remembered James' words when he had found them on the step; 'everyone knows what he's like… you'll only get hurt.' He hadn't liked hearing that very much, but, in all honesty, he had to admit that he deserved the reputation. But was this thing with Lily like all the rest? It was weird. He didn't know what to make of it…_

"_Sirius?" the small voice broke in on his thoughts, sounding puzzled. He pulled himself back to the present time, and tried to smile at the little boy. Strange that his only companion and confidante was now a five-year-old. _

"_Come on, kid," he said, "It's freezing in here. You might be wearing a nice thick coat, but I'm not. Let's go."_

"_But…" Joe began._

"_What about that game of Tag?" Sirius interrupted._

_Joe looked puzzled._

"_But you said…"_

_In reply, Sirius transformed, and headed out of the bushes. Half way out, he looked back over his shoulder. Joe had not moved, but was watching him carefully. He tilted his head to one side and let his tongue hang out in a grinning expression. His face said, in tones no five-year-old could misunderstand, 'Come and get me.'_

_Joe's face split into a grin as he scrambled to his feet, and Sirius galloped easily out onto the lawn, the little boy chasing him as fast as his short legs could go._

_

* * *

_

"Um… Hi…" Lily said, uncertainly, peering at the two teenagers as they emerged from the shadows. Then her mouth fell open. She heard Louis give a strange sort of croak beside her, and knew that he had seen the same thing as her.

"Er…" Louis began, and broke off, apparently unable to think of anything to say.

"Hello," the girl, Francesca, said quietly, "You're Louis Weasley and Lily Potter, right?"

"That's right," Rose put in, before anyone else could speak, her voice falsely bright, "I'm sure you've noticed the family resemblances, you two. Either of you like to have a guess where we are?"

"We… we've come forty-seven years into the future, haven't we?" said Lily, flatly.

"No way!" Louis exclaimed, "We can't have…"

"And just why _can't_ we have?" Rose demanded, "That's what Sirius did, didn't he?"

Lily sank to the ground with a groan.

"This is all my fault!"

"No, it's not…" Louis began automatically.

"No," agreed Rose, "It's _partly_ your fault. Quite a big part, actually. But it's also partly _our_ fault for being stupid enough to go along with it. And it's partly Sirius' fault for getting himself pulled back to his own time. And it's quite a _lot_ of James' fault, for getting us all drunk. You might even say it's partly our parents' fault, for not realising that if Sirius walked over that patch of garden, he'd disappear again, even though you told them how you got back to our time… So it's certainly not _all_ your fault."

"Okay, okay," Lily agreed, "_Partly_ my fault," she looked helplessly at the boy, "You're descended from Jamie. You must be," she turned to look at the girl, "Are you brother and sister, then?"

"No!" they both said together, a little too quickly.

"We're… sort of cousins," Seth said, hesitantly.

"Quite distant cousins," Francesca said, more firmly.

"Yes," Rose put in, "Louis, Francesca is your… let me see, what is it? Great niece, I think. Is that right?" She looked at the girl, who, Lily noticed now, appeared to have her hair dyed purple. She wondered whether it was naturally red, in typical Weasley fashion.

Louis was looking at the girl in bemusement.

"You're… Vic or Dom's granddaughter?"

The girl nodded, her cheeks a little pink. Something else occurred to Lily.

"Victoire, right?" she asked. The girl bit her lip.

"I'm not sure… how much we're meant to tell you…" she glanced hesitantly at the boy. He shrugged. Lily looked at him.

"And presumably, you're _my_ great nephew. You have to be descended from James. You look just like him."

"I know," the boy looked as though he had only just refrained from rolling his eyes, "I've been told."

"We're wasting time," Rose said, impatiently, "the point is, that these two knew we were coming. Because we told them we were. Only, obviously, they can't tell us anything, from their parents' names to whether we manage to get Sirius back, because knowing the future is _dangerous," _she shot Lily a significant look, "In fact, they can't even take us inside, because we told them they wouldn't. What they _can_ tell us is how to use this bloody thing properly…"

"What?" Louis interrupted, "Wait a minute! _Why _can they tell us that, when they can't tell us anything else?"

"Because we told them they would," Rose said calmly, "Because obviously, the _us_ that exist here remember what happened perfectly well. And these two hav been warned that they mustn't do anything to change it…"

Lily gave the two kids a sharp glance, wondering how much the Lily of the future might have told them, but they were looking at Rose.

"So…" Louis was looking from one to the other, fascinated, "you two came out here tonight, _knowing_ you'd bump into Rose?"

"Pretty much," Seth admitted, "I mean, we weren't sure exactly how it would happen. But we knew it was tonight. Oh yes. We brought this, as well."

He held out a small vial, towards Louis, who stared at it.

"It's just a painkilling potion," Francesca explained, "Because they said you'd have hurt your ankle."

Louis' mouth fell open for a moment, then he shook his head.

"This is _weird_!"

But he took the vial and was about to drink it when Rose snatched it off him.

"Louis! Are you a complete idiot? Do you always drink potions offered to you by total strangers?"

"They're hardly strangers," Lily pointed out.

"Aren't they?" Rose's face was wooden, "Have _you_ met them before?"

She put her wand to the vial, and muttered something. The potion turned yellow for a moment, before reverting back to its natural colour. She nodded.

"Okay. It is painkilling potion," she held it out to Louis, who took it and drank it down in one mouthful. Then she looked at Seth and Francesca.

"Sorry. But I had to check."

Both teenagers were grinning, and Rose frowned.

"What's so funny?"

"Only that you haven't changed at all," said Francesca, with a giggle.

Louis, for whom the potion had brought immediate relief, grinned.

"Aurors. They're all the same, and they only get worse with age. That's what Aunt Ginny says."

Rose scowled.

"Oh, shut up. Now, are you two going to tell us how to get to 1981, and then back to 2028 again?"

Seth nodded, and gingerly took the Time Turner that Lily held out.

"Okay. I'm only telling you what you told me yourselves, so you'd better write it down or something when you get back, so you still remember in forty seven years. But here's what you do…"

Several minutes later, they were preparing to go. Louis was on his feet, carefully putting a little weight on his ankle, and being warned by Rose that just because it didn't hurt as much, that didn't mean the damage had been healed, and he still had to be very careful. Lily was silent, watching these two kids from the future.

They _knew_. They knew whether they got Sirius back… but she could not ask. And if she did, they wouldn't tell her. But surely… if they hadn't managed it, they would not be being directed to 1981, but straight back to 2028. But thinking about how all this was working made her head hurt, and she couldn't be sure of anything.

Rose had the Time Turner this time, and Lily allowed her cousin to take control. Instead, she untied Cuthbert's transfigured lead from the fence, and gripped it firmly, as Rose placed the gold chain round their necks once more.

Louis suddenly looked at Seth and Francesca, with a grin.

"One question before we go. Is there something going on between you two?"

The colour both teenagers went gave them away completely, but Seth tried to bluff his way out of it.

"What makes you think that?"

"Well…" Louis raised his eyebrows, "originally, the way you both got _very _defensive about being quite _distant_ cousins. But you've just confirmed it for me…" he grinned at their discomfiture, "Don't worry. We won't tell anyone, even when we know you properly in 2075."

"I have a question as well," Lily said suddenly. They looked at her warily. She smiled.

"Francesca… are you a Metamorphmagus?"

In reply, Francesca smiled dreamily, and turned her hair the same colour as Lily's.

Just before Rose spun the Time Turner, Seth suddenly appeared to remember something.

"Shit! I almost forgot! It's the 16th of March, 2075, by the way," He looked round at their blankly surprised faces, "You have to know the date. Because you have to tell us. So you'd better remember it."

"The 16th of March, 2075," Rose repeated, understanding coming into her face, "Right. Well… see you in about forty years, kids…"


	19. A Question of Blood

**Disclaimer: I do not own JK Rowling's characters or world**

**A/N: Thanks as usual to my latest reviewers – arwenjanelilylyra, ermireallydon'tcare, and kukumalu01. I know this is a very quick update, so possibly I didn't give everyone a chance to review the latest chapter. Feel free to leave two if you like :-) **

**No Sirius in this one, I'm afraid. Please don't shout at me, arwenjanelilylyra, I promise he will be back next time!**

**I'm hoping to get this finished in the next couple of weeks, because I'm going away on the 19th of June, and won't be back until the autumn, and I don't know if I'll have internet access while I'm away. But I really will try to get it finished before I go!**

**

* * *

**

"_Well, good night."_

"_Yes, good night. See you later in the week."_

"_Night!"_

"_Night."_

_There were four loud pops, and four tired people apparated back to their homes, thinking about cups of tea and bed._

_Two of them arrived in a house curiously still and silent._

_Harry Potter frowned._

"_Funny. I thought the kids'd still be up."_

"_It's pretty late," his wife pointed out, "or rather, early." Her foot touched something on the dark kitchen floor, and she lit her wand and looked down. It was an empty beer bottle. She frowned._

"_Oh, for goodness' sake!"_

_Harry chuckled._

"_Not that surprising, I suppose."_

_At the moment, the kitchen door opened, and their niece appeared in the doorway, still fully dressed, although looking a bit dishevelled, as though she might have been asleep in her clothes._

"_Uncle Harry. Aunt Ginny."_

_Something in her voice made them both look sharply at her._

"_What's the matter, Molly?" Ginny asked, "Where are the others? What's happened?"_

_Molly looked as though she might burst into tears._

"_They… they… I tried to stop them, I honestly did, but…"_

"_Molly," Harry interrupted sharply, "What's happened?"_

_Molly bit her lip._

"_Sirius… he… they said he must have gone back to his own time. Something about being in the place where he arrived, and being pulled back…"_

_Ginny gasped._

"_Oh, Harry! Why didn't we think of that? It's just what happened to Lily! All she had to was go back to the place she arrived in the past, and something pulled her back to her own time…"_

_Harry was frowning, obviously thinking hard._

"_You mean Sirius has _gone_? Where are Lily and Rose?"_

_Molly's eyes filled with tears._

"_Yes, he just disappeared. And Lily and Rose… they went after him."_

_There was dead silence for a moment. _

"_But how?" said Ginny, at last, blankly._

"_They… they went and got the Time Turner from Uncle Ron and Aunt Hermione's house. And they followed him. Lily said she knew how to do it…"_

"_Well, of all the _stupid _things to do!" Harry exploded, "Honestly, I thought that at least Rose had more sense these days! Hasn't she learnt _anything_ in the last three years? Why in the name of Merlin didn't you just floo the Ministry straight away?"_

_Molly looked very unhappy._

"_We didn't think of it. And they thought they'd be quick… Only they've been gone for hours…"_

_Ginny gave a slight moan._

"_Harry… what are we going to do?"_

_Harry stood in the kitchen, looking harassed._

"_So… Rose and Lily are somewhere in the past again…"_

"_And Louis," Molly added._

"Louis?_" Harry demanded, "What was _Louis_ doing here?"_

"_Um… James invited him…"_

"_Oh, good grief! Don't say James has gone too? What about the others? Hugo and Albus here too, were they? And how about Fred and Roxy? And Lucy? Is she in the past too?"_

"_No," Molly said in a very small voice, "It was only James and Louis who were here, apart from us. And Jamie… didn't go to the past. He's in the living room."_

_She led them out of the kitchen and into the lounge. The lights were on in here, and Harry and Ginny saw their eldest son sprawled face down on the couch, apparently dead to the world._

"_What's the matter with him?" demanded Ginny, horrified, and then caught sight of the state of the room, "Oh, for goodness' _sake_! I thought you lot were supposed to be responsible adults these days! Remind me never to leave you all in the house alone again!"_

_There were empty cans and bottles scattered around the floor, and someone had spilt something that had spread a dark stain across the carpet. The chair that Sirius had knocked over still lay on its side in the middle of the room, and a pot plant had been knocked off the windowsill, scattering soil everywhere._

"_I'm sorry," whispered Molly miserably._

_Ginny looked at her, and sighed._

"_Don't worry. I expect that you are the one _least_ to blame_._ I know what Jamie's like. And Lily too."_

_Harry strode over to his son, and grabbed his shoulder._

"_James. Wake up."_

_James groaned, but did not move._

_Harry firmly seized the back of his shirt, and hauled. James emerged from the cushions of the couch, looking significantly the worse for wear, and only half awake._

_He groaned again, and flopped back down as soon as his father released him._

"_James Potter!" Ginny appeared beside the couch, "Sit up right now, and talk to us!"_

_The tousled head was lifted, and James looked blearily at his mother._

"_Hello, Mum," he mumbled, before his eyes closed again, and his head went back down. Ginny looked at Molly._

"_How much did he have?"_

"_I don't know," said Molly unhappily, "A lot."_

_Harry pointed his wand at his son, and calmly uttered a revival charm. It wouldn't make James feel any better (there _were_ charms that would help with hangovers, but Harry thought it would do his son good to suffer a little) but it would wake him up._

_James groaned again, and, after a moment, lifted his head again and looked at his parents. _

"_Oh Merlin," he muttered, "What happened?"_

"_You don't remember?" Molly said, incredulously._

_James thought about it._

"_I remember… talking about the stuff we used to do at school. And…" he frowned, "I had an argument with Sirius about something… but not in here. We were outside. Why were we outside?"_

_Harry, who had already had a long and wearying night, massaged the bridge of his nose._

"_And then…" James continued, without waiting for an answer, "Then I remember _something_ happening, because we were all in a panic about it. And Louis poured water over me, the bastard. But I was sitting on the stairs by then. And… Oh, Merlin! Shitting hell! They went back in time again, didn't they?" He looked frantically at his parents, "I tried to stop them, I swear I did!"_

"_No, you didn't," Molly put in, "You tried to go _with_ them. Different thing, Jamie. But Rose wouldn't take you. She said you were too drunk."_

"_Well, at least she had _that _much sense," said Harry, "How drunk were the rest of them?"_

_Molly thought about this._

"_Well, Sirius was pretty bad. And so was Rose, but I think she'd sobered up a bit by the time they went. Lily and Louis weren't so bad, I don't think."_

_Harry walked over to the fire and threw a handful of floo powder in. Then he knelt down and stuck his head after it._

"_Ron? You there? Sorry to do this, mate. But you and Hermione need to get over here. Right now."_

_

* * *

_

_Geoffrey Winterbourne put the small sample under his microscope and peered down into it. For a moment, he simply looked at it. Then he raised his head, blinked a couple of times, and looked again. He looked a little longer this time. Then he picked up the plastic bottle he had taken the sample from, and held it up._

_No, it was definitely the right one._

_He removed the glass plate, cleaned it under the tap with disinfectant, and poured another few drops of the sample onto it. He put it back under the microscope and looked again._

_Then he called over to his assistant._

"_Flora! Could you come and look at this for a moment?"_

_Flora Morrison put the tools she was cleaning down, washed her hands, and went over to Geoffrey. She was a young woman, in her late twenties, dressed in a neat white coat, fair hair sensibly pinned back under a net._

_She looked at the sample for a few seconds in silence, and then looked at the older man in puzzlement._

"_Where did you get this?"_

"_From that dog I went to look at this morning," he told her, "The stray they thought might have been poisoned."_

_She stared at him as if she thought he might have gone mad._

"_You can't have! You must have got it mixed up…"_

"_Mixed up with what? This is a _veterinary _practice!"_

"_You'll have to send it away for proper analysis," she suggested._

_He looked worried._

"_But what can I tell them? They'll think I'm mad!"_

_Flora looked as though she might agree with them, and then a curious expression came over her face._

"_Geoff… I've got an idea. Would you mind… not doing anything with it, just for now? In fact, would you mind if I took it? I just want to find something out…"_

_He looked puzzled, but nodded slowly._

"_Well… all right. Mrs Ashby rang up just an hour or so ago to say the dog seemed better, so we don't need to worry about poison, I don't think. I don't see why you shouldn't take it," a slight smile appeared on his face, "So long as you don't want to use it for some sort of satanic witchcraft."_

_He was joking, of course, and she raised a slightly stiff smile, before pocketing the small sample._

_

* * *

_

_She let herself in by the back door, and her youngest brother looked up from the book he was reading._

"_Oh…" he said vaguely, "Hey, Flo."_

_She rolled her eyes. She hadn't seen him for a month, and that was all she got. _

"_Nice to see you too, kid," she said, sarcastically, but he had gone back to his book. Honestly, he read far too much for a fourteen-year-old._

"_Are Mum and Dad in?" she asked loudly._

"_No," he said, without looking up, "It's just me and Hector."_

"_Right. Well, I'll make myself a cup of tea then, shall I?"_

"_Okay," he agreed, absently. She sighed, and went through to the kitchen to put the kettle on._

_She had just put a tea bag into a mug when the door opened and her brother Hector came in._

"_Flora! What are you doing here?"_

"_Honestly!" she snapped, irritably, "Isn't anyone pleased to see me? I thought I'd come and see you all, that's all. I only live a half hour bus ride away. It's not really that strange a thing to do. Where are Mum and Dad?"_

"_Dad's staying late at work," Hector told her, "and Mum's at the shops. Do they know you're coming?"_

"_No," she said shortly, "I didn't realise I had to ask for permission to come into the house these days."_

_He grinned._

"_Sorry. Of course you don't." He gave her a pat on the back as he passed, which was about as good as she could expect from an undemonstrative eighteen-year-old._

_She poured out her tea, and sat down at the table, watching her brother help himself to a chocolate biscuit from the cupboard._

"_Have the others been home lately?" she asked, casually. He glanced at her from under his slightly-too-long hair._

"_By 'the others', you mean Cassius, right? No, not since the row."_

"_Right," she sighed, "When did it all get messed up, Hector?"_

_He shrugged._

"_Right when Mum and Dad got married?"_

_She scowled._

"_Or just since Cassius was born."_

"_Don't be mean," he said, mildly, "Cass is okay."_

_She looked straight at him._

"_No, Hector. Cassius is not _okay_. He's messed up, and twisted, and you have to realise that. He's not the fun big brother you always looked up to anymore," she gave him a sharp glance, "Have you been in contact with him?"_

_Hector's guilty expression was answer enough. Flora leaned forwards._

"_Hector… please! You mustn't! I… you're my little brother, Hector, and I _won't_ stand by and see you follow him down that path. You don't know what you're getting yourself into…"_

"_I'm not getting myself into anything," he muttered, "Leave me alone, Flora!"_

_She fell silent, and watched him, her heart twisting. Did anyone else have a family like theirs? Sometimes, it felt as though the Morrisons couldn't really all be one family. Had any other family in the Wizarding World had kids in every house at Hogwarts? Cassius and Hector, the Slytherins; Tanya, in Gryffindor; Philotes and Bathsheba in Hufflepuff; and Benvolio, the baby, in Ravenclaw. _

_Sometimes, Flora, who had read Shakespeare, wondered if her parents had named Ben after the peacemaker in Romeo and Juliet deliberately, either as an ironic joke, or in the desperate hope that he might somehow unite their warring Houses, because by the time he was born, both Cass and Tanya had been at Hogwarts, and already falling out explosively._

_And then there was Flora, the oldest, who worked as a veterinary nurse in Barnstaple. The squib. _

_

* * *

_

Once again, they landed on the ground. Cuthbert was crushed up against Lily, his eyes closed, whimpering desperately. Lily put her arm around him, and sat up. Rose was clambering to her feet.

They appeared to have arrived in broad daylight this time, and it was only good fortune that there was nobody around. At least, Rose could only hope that there was nobody watching from the house windows. No-one had come rushing out anyway. She looked around her, getting a sinking feeling.

"Well, I don't know where the hell we are," Lily commented, "But this _definitely _isn't 1981."

"No, I thought it didn't look like it," Rose agreed, "Come on, Lil. You did Muggle history, didn't you? Where are we?"

"We didn't do this kind of history," Lily muttered, "We just watched the odd old film. I know you've seen as many Muggle films as I have, Rosie, if not more. Your _grandparents_ are Muggles. But if I had to take a guess, I'd say we're at least ten years too late. It looks like the nineties, by the cars and stuff."

"So… either we did something wrong, or they got it wrong when they told us," Louis said.

Rose looked annoyed.

"I did exactly what he told me to do. He must have got it wrong."

She looked down at the Time Turner in her hands, and an expression of horror came over her face. She swallowed hard.

"Well… I don't want to worry anyone unnecessarily… but the Time Turner appears to be broken."

"_What_?" both Lily and Louis exclaimed at the same time.

Rose held it up for them to look.

"It's not smashed, don't worry. But the hourglass bit's come off the frame. We won't be able to spin it."

"Let me see!" Lily snatched it from her cousin, dropping Cuthbert's lead. She stared at the thing in disbelief.

"What are we going to do?"

"We might be able to mend it," Louis suggested, leaning over her shoulder. He too had got to his feet, although he was walking very carefully on his injured ankle. They surveyed it together. The thin gold axel that the hourglass had swung on had snapped in two. Louis put his wand to it.

"_Reparo_." Nothing happened.

"I don't think that works on magical objects," said Rose, doubtfully.

"Obviously not," Louis agreed, "So… what next?"

There was a short silence, while they all tried, more or less successfully, not to panic.

Lily, who had been trying to get the hourglass to stay in place without the axel, finally looked up.

"Dumbledore," she said.

"What?" Rose looked at her.

"Dumbledore's in this time. And he already knows me, and knows about Sirius and the Time Turner and everything. If anyone can mend it, he can. And he's the only person we can tell the truth to. At least, parts of the truth."

Rose and Louis thought about this, then Rose nodded.

"I suppose that's quite a good idea," she said, sounding almost surprised.

"Yes, it is," Louis agreed, with relief, "Merlin, we can't get stranded here! How on earth would they ever get us back?"

After a few moments to sort out some sort of plan, they apparated and landed in Hogsmeade. They immediately realised their mistake. It was clearly a Hogsmeade day, and there were students everywhere, who looked curiously at the trio of strangers with a scruffy-looking dog.

"Bugger," muttered Rose, "Keep your head down, Lil. If we're in the nineties, like you said, your mum could be here somewhere, and you look a lot too much like her…"

"Good thing Al's not with us," said Louis, with a grin, "I don't think people could possibly miss a Harry Potter look-alike appearing in Hogsmeade!"

"Can't we do something to hide me?" Lily asked, desperately.

"Well, if we'd been thinking, we'd have pinched your dad's Invisibility Cloak," Rose said, "But then, if we'd been thinking, we wouldn't be here in the first place. Short of a Stinging Jinx to disguise you, I can't think of anything. A Disillusionment Charm wouldn't work at close quarters like this, not in broad daylight… You'd better put this on, and keep the hood up."

She slipped her black hoodie off, and handed it to Lily, who put it on, and pulled it up over her head. It hid her bright red hair, which made her a lot less noticeable, and cast her face into shadow.

"I feel like an idiot," she grumbled.

"I feel bloody cold," Rose retorted, "I've only got a couple of vest tops on now."

A bunch of teenage girls stopped beside them, and eyed them, giggling, and obviously looking at Louis, who looked uncomfortable. Lily grinned to herself. It was a while since Louis had had any attention from girls; everyone they knew in their own time knew he was gay. But back in his school days, he had had almost as many female followers as James. James had revelled in the attention; Louis had not, and had often cursed his Veela blood.

"Come on," he said now, abruptly, heading onto the street, "The quicker we get up to the castle, the better."

Rose stared at him.

"Well, you're going in the wrong direction," she pointed out.

He grinned back at her.

"No I'm not. You're forgetting; James and I know every secret passage in the place."

Rose sighed.

"And what exactly is wrong with going up to the gate, like normal people?"

He frowned at her.

"You know, Rosie, you're getting more and more like your mum as you get older. Is this what Auror training does to a person? You used to like this sort of thing!"

She glared at him.

"It's not Auror training; it's called not being fourteen any more! And we're in enough trouble as it is, without being caught in forbidden passages…"

"But we're far less likely to be spotted if we go by the passage. And it takes us right up into the castle. Not to mention the fact that you spent years nagging us to tell you where the passages were, and now I'm volunteering to show you one!"

"It's a bit late now. What use would they be to me?" she argued, but she was wavering.

Lily, while the other two were arguing, was looking down Hogsmeade street at a group of students coming up it. She narrowed her eyes, trying to work it out… The boys at the front didn't seem to be wearing Hogwarts uniforms. Weird. And it looked like the gaggle of younger students, who _were_ wearing Hogwarts uniforms, were following the older boys. As they came closer, Lily watched them, and suddenly, she recognised the one at the front.

She giggled suddenly. Louis and Rose looked round at her.

"What's funny?"

She grinned at Louis.

"Only that I think you'd do better to hide _your_ face too."

"What?" he looked round, startled. The group of girls were still eying them from a distance.

"Because of them?" he said, incredulously, "It's not _that _much of a big deal, Lil…"

"No," Lily said thoughtfully, "Because I've just worked out what year it is."

They looked at her, alarmed.

"What d'you mean?" Rose asked, anxiously.

Lily grinned at them again, and pointed at the group now standing in front of Zonko's shop window.

"Recognise that guy? The tall one at the front? No, you probably don't; neither of you are really Quidditch followers, are you? That's Viktor Krum. Which means it's 1994. Triwizard Year. And you know, Louis, you've got more than a passing resemblance to your own mum..."


	20. The Squib

**Disclaimer: I do not own JK Rowling's characters or world.**

**A/N: Well, I have finally finished my degree!**

**I'm so sorry I haven't updated this in a while, I got caught up in final exams and then end of uni stuff. I'm now staying with my sister, providing her with free childcare, so I'm not getting so much time for writing (it's amazing how much time looking after an 8 month old baby takes, even when it's not yours!). I'll try very very hard to do better now though. It is quite a long chapter to make up for it!**

**Thank you so much for the reviews, arwenjanelilylyra, Genji.25, ermireallydon'tcare, argyleninja914, littlemisscrazy96, and WeatherWatch. I'm really sorry if there's anyone who left signed reviews which I didn't reply to personally - Like I say, life's been a bit hectic, but I do try and reply to reviews normally. Anyway, I'm so glad you're all enjoying it.**

**This is getting close to the end now - in fact, I have already written the last sentence, although not the several chapters that come before it. This has turned out so much longer than I ever expected - I though it would reach 10 chapters max, and this is number 20! Special thanks and brownies to everyone who has been reading since the early chapters went up - you guys have been my inspiration, and your reviews have kept me going!**

**

* * *

**

_Sirius was getting rather tired of dog food. He was also getting rather tired of leads and walks and closed doors which he did not dare to open. _

_All in all, he was getting rather tired of being a dog, which was something he had never thought would happen. _

_Joe was proving to be a pleasant but exhausting and slightly worrying companion. Sirius was constantly slightly nervous of what the little boy might say, and he found that several days of conversing only with a five-year-old was making him miss more adult conversation. Not that you could really call it conversing; Sirius had refused to transform himself into a human again, so Joe was doing all the talking. Sirius had never appreciated just how tiring entertaining a small child could be._

_On the other hand, it was quite fun to pretend to be a little kid again and romp around the garden and fields without anyone raising their eyebrows or making snide comments. Whenever he had done that before, Lily – Lily Evans, that was – would make mocking comments about a Peter Pan complex, whatever that might be, and even James and Remus laughed at him for enjoying such things so much._

_But you could have too much of a good thing, and anyway, he couldn't simply enjoy it; there were too many things to worry about, like Joe's tendency to chatter. And whether or not anybody was actually going to come and find him. After a few days, and no sign of them, he was starting to worry a little._

_Then there was the fact, which he had realised on his second night back in 1981, that Remus was not the only old friend still here. Somewhere; he did not know where; was a rat called Peter Pettigrew. _

_The thought of Peter made Sirius more blind with anger than he had ever been before, and that was saying something, because Sirius Black had been very angry on occasions. _

_He could not help dwelling on all the times they had shared. All the happy memories in which Peter played a part. All the times Sirius had slung a casual arm around the smaller boy's shoulders, or hidden under the Invisibility Cloak with him, or helped him with his homework..._

_It had been James, though, whom Peter had hero-worshipped; James who, in first year, had allowed Peter to become one of them, when Sirius would have scornfully brushed off the other boy and his irritating admiration of them. _

_And it was James whom Peter had ultimately betrayed. The idea that all those years of being one of the four Marauders had meant so little to Peter was unbelievable. _

_The Ashbys seemed to have resigned themselves to the idea of the dog staying with them for now. They had, Sirius knew, put advertisements in the local paper, and posters around town asking whether anyone had lost a dog. This had alarmed him at first, but he had reminded himself that nobody except Remus knew that he was an Animagus, and Remus was a long way from Barnstaple. At least Sirius sincerely hoped he was. Anyway, nobody answered the advertisements, of course, so Sirius stayed, much to Joe's delight._

_He was now permitted to sleep on Joe's bed every night, and could not help having the thought that he was sleeping in what would one day be Lily's room… Which only made him think of Lily, and wonder whether he would ever see her again. _

_He was quite glad of the distraction, therefore, when Joe demanded that he be taken to watch the play that the little boy was in at school. Maureen and David had exchanged glances when this request had been made. They had been astonished at just how well trained the dog seemed to be; it behaved almost like a person in some ways. All the same…_

"_I'm not sure it's really the place for a dog, sweetie," Maureen had said, cautiously, "He wouldn't _enjoy_ it, pet."_

_Joe had pushed his bottom lip out._

"_He _would_! He's never… I bet he's never seen a Christmas play before."_

"_I daresay he hasn't," David had said, amused, "But I don't think he'd really appreciate it. He'd just get bored, Joe."_

_But Joe had been stubborn, and eventually, in slight bemusement, his parents had given in, and rung the school to make sure it was okay, and Sirius, to his amusement, found that he was going to watch his first Nativity Play._

_Joe had been ecstatic._

"_Now you'll see what they're like!" he whispered to Sirius when they were alone, "And you get to hear me say 'Let's go to Bethlehem and see the Christ Child.' I bet you'll like it. I could see if they'll let me take you to the party too, and you can learn those games…" He looked hopefully at Sirius, as if for some reply, but Sirius simply tilted his head to one side and looked quizzically at the boy. _

_Joe sighed._

"_They probably wouldn't let me though," he said, regretfully but realistically, "They'd say you'd get in the way. They don't know you're really a man," he looked thoughtfully at Sirius, a new train of thought occurring to him, "Are you really a man, who can turn himself into a dog, or are you a dog who can turn himself into a man?"_

_It was an interesting question from such a small child, Sirius thought, and one which Remus would probably say was debatable. But he could not answer questions, so he was silent._

"_I wish I knew where you'd come from," Joe said wistfully, "I know you got here by magic. But I wish I knew how. And I wish you'd be a man again so you could tell me."_

_Sirius shook his head, and Joe sighed again._

"_I know. You can't because Mummy an' Daddy might see you. But at least you're coming to see me in the play."_

_

* * *

_

_Theresa Morrison let herself in at the back door, and hung her coat up on the peg, then turned to go into the lounge. There was a figure standing in the doorway, and Theresa's face lit up._

"_Flora!" She caught her eldest daughter into a warm embrace, which Flora returned, laughing._

"_Hello, Mum! At least someone's pleased to see me!"_

"_What, you mean the boys didn't jump up and wait on you hand and foot?" Theresa teased, going into the lounge, "Ben, have you moved all day? I'm sure you were sitting there with that book when I left."_

"_Hi, Mum," Ben said vacantly, looking up briefly. Theresa shook her head at Flora._

"_Honestly. Talk about a bookworm. He may have a Ravenclaw's brains, but he'll get nowhere if he carries on living in his own world."_

"_Oh, I don't know," Flora laughed, "I have a feeling little Benvolio's going to go far, even if he is a hopeless bookworm."_

"_Hey!" the teenager protested, looking up, "I can hear you, you know! I may be reading, but I'm not deaf!"_

"_Oh, sorry," Flora raised her eyebrows at him, "I thought those two meant the same thing for you."_

_Ben glared at her, but he couldn't keep it up, and soon grinned instead._

"_Anyway, to what do we owe the honour?" Theresa turned to her daughter, smiling, "Anything special, or…"_

"_Well…" said Flora, glancing at Ben and seeing that he'd gone back to his book, "There _was _something I wanted to ask you, actually. I don't know if you'll be able to tell me though."_

_Theresa Morrison worked in the Improper Use of Magic Office at the Ministry. She was not high-ranking; indeed, she was little more than an office assistant, but they needed the money. Her pureblood Slytherin family disapproved, but Theresa insisted that she quite enjoyed her job._

"_What is it?" Theresa sent the shopping into the kitchen with a flick of her wand, and flopped into an armchair. _

_Flora perched on the edge of the chair opposite, ignoring Benvolio, who was sprawled on the sofa. _

"_This is going to sound odd, I know. But… are there any Animagi in Barnstaple?"_

_Theresa stared at her daughter, and thought about this. One of her jobs was to keep the files of registered Animagi in the country. It was a very difficult skill to acquire, so there were not all that many of them._

"_No, I don't think so," she said slowly, "In fact, I'm sure there aren't. I would have noticed if there had been anyone living so close. Why?"_

_Flora shook her head._

"_Just something strange that happened today."_

_That had been all she was going to say. Then she changed her mind. She trusted her mother's discretion, and she might be able to help._

"_This morning, Geoff got a call from some people who'd found a stray dog they thought might have been poisoned. He went and saw it, and the dog wasn't poisoned after all; it was a bit under the weather, he said, but it was getting better. But he took a blood test, just in case…"_

"_A _blood test_?" Theresa questioned. Flora sighed. That was the trouble with living in two worlds._

"_It's a perfectly normal procedure. You stick a special kind of needle into the animal, and take a small sample of blood. You can tell if there's something toxic in the body by looking at the blood, if you know what to look for. But you can also tell the difference between a dog's blood and a human's…"_

_Theresa's face changed, and Flora knew that her mother had caught on._

"_You mean…" Theresa said, "That when you and Geoff looked at this sample… it was actually a human's blood?" she shook her head, "Amazing what Muggles can do without magic…"_

_Flora rolled her eyes. If she had heard that line once, she had heard it a hundred times. Even her family tended to forget that, to all intents and purposes, she _was_ a Muggle._

"_Well, I know for a fact that there are no registered Animagi in Barnstaple," said Theresa firmly, "But that doesn't stop one from _coming _to Barnstaple. And it's always possible that there's an _un_registered Animagus there…"_

_Flora nodded, looking troubled._

"_But… if the dog's an Animagus – and I can't think of any other explanation – then he's in trouble. What was he doing crashing around in a Muggle garden in the night? And why did he stay with the Muggles, instead of just getting out? He must have a wand…"_

_Theresa was frowning._

"_There's no way this blood test could simply be wrong?"_

"_No," Flora shook her head, "I looked at it myself. It definitely wasn't dog blood… and Geoff certainly couldn't have got hold of a sample of human blood by mistake!"_

"_I should probably mention this at work…" Theresa said thoughtfully._

"_No!" Flora burst out, then looked worried, "I don't know… I have a bad feeling about this. Please, Mum. Don't say anything. If it _is_ an unregistered Animagus, we'll only get him arrested. Let me… let me find out first. I just have a feeling…"_

_Theresa looked at her daughter in silence. Flora's intuition had always been extraordinarily acute; sometimes, Theresa though it must be to make up for her lack of magic. _

_If this got out, and her bosses found out that she'd known about an unregistered Animagus, she could lose her job… But on the other hand, there did not seem to be any reason for them to find out… and really, she didn't _know_ anything. It might not be an Animagus, or it might be a perfectly legitimate one, from elsewhere in the country. Whatever the case, it could do with investigation. But Theresa had a realistic impression of the Ministry's idea of an investigation. They would wade in, make an arrest, and ask questions later, if at all. It was perfectly within the realms of possibility that the people to report it would fall under suspicion too. Especially if it was a lowly admin assistant who had once been a Parkinson before she married. _

_So she nodded slowly._

"_All right. But what are you going to do? I don't want you doing anything risky…"_

_Flora sighed._

"_Mum, I'm twenty-nine, not a child. I can handle it. These are _Muggles…_"_

"_If it's an Animagus, it's definitely not a Muggle…"_

"_No, but he's not going to do anything to me. I won't take any risks; as far as they're concerned, I'll be an ordinary Vet Nurse, come to check up on the dog. But Mum…there is something you could do. Could you possibly find out at work if there's an Animagus anywhere in the country registered as a big black dog…?"_

_

* * *

_

"_Hello, Maureen Ashby speaking," Maureen said as she answered the telephone._

"_Good morning, Mrs Ashby," the voice was young and pleasant, "This is Flora Morrison from Winterbourne and Anderson Veterinary Practice. We've got the results of the blood test we took yesterday. Are you still taking care of the dog?"_

"_Well, yes," Maureen admitted, "We've advertised, in case somebody had lost him, and we told the police too, but there's been no response."_

"_Right. Well, I was wondering if I could come round and check up on him at some point. Make sure he's still all right. The blood tests haven't shown anything wrong, but it's as well to give him another physical check…"_

"_Yes, of course. Although he seems fine. He's playing with my son on the kitchen floor as we speak. We're a little busy this week, but if it's just a quick visit..."_

"_Oh yes, it'll be quick," the nurse assured her, "How about Wednesday afternoon...?"_

_"Oh..." Maureen glanced up at the calender on the wall, "My son's in a play on Wednesday. But we'll be back by about half four, if that's any use..."_

_"Actually, that would be perfect," the young woman said, "I can drop in on the way home from work. So shall we say 4.30 on Wednesday then?"  
_

"_That would be fine. I'll see you then."_

_

* * *

_

_It was a mistake his family often made; to behave as though Ben was not in the room when he was reading, assuming that he was not listening. As his mother and sister left the room, he put his book down with a frown. An Animagus? Weird. His frown deepened as he listened to his sister make a phone call in the hallway. That was even weirder. Why was she making work calls from home, and at this time of day? Unless… maybe it wasn't really an official work call. Maybe she only wanted to go and check up on the dog to see if it was an Animagus... _

_That made sense, although he had never really thought of Flora as devious that way. She wasn't like Cassius or Hector. He was vaguely impressed. He'd sometimes wondered (because Ben did more wondering than his family ever gave him credit for) which house Flora would have been in if she had not been a squib. Usually, he thought Hufflepuff, or perhaps even Ravenclaw like himself; she was pretty clever, he thought, although she had left home when he was only three, so it was hard to tell how clever she was in an academic way. But now he wondered if she might have some Slytherin in her after all. _

_Although he wasn't sure what she thought she was going to do if it _did_ turn out to be an unregistered Animagus._

_He went back to his book, but a corner of his mind remained on what he had just overheard, and Ben Morrison wondered…_

_

* * *

_

_The dark-haired young man appeared ill at ease. He stood before the marble fireplace, fingering the slender wine glass in his hand, and glancing from side to side every now and again. His companion, who was around the same age, watched him, an unpleasant smile on his face._

"_I can't imagine why you're so happy, Lucius," the first young man said, almost resentfully, "Anyone would think you were _glad_…"_

"_Of course not. I am as distressed as any of you," the fair man interrupted smoothly, "But it was nearly two months ago now, and I do not see the point of panicking, as some of you have been doing. We have lost. We all know that. The least we can do is concede defeat gracefully…"_

"_Oh, yes," the young man's handsome face twisted into an unpleasant sneer, "'Concede defeat gracefully.' That's one way of describing what you have been doing, Lucius. Sucking up to the Ministry and bribing your way out of trouble would be another way…"_

_The fair-haired man's face grew ugly._

"_What I have been doing, Cassius, is protecting my family. _I, _unlike you,_ _have a wife and son, you might remember. The Dark Lord is finished. He is not coming back. Those of you who believe otherwise are deluding yourselves. The only thing we can do is to keep our heads down. My dear sister-in-law may seem to want to spend the rest of her life in Azkaban, but personally, I'd rather not. The Ministry are set on cleaning up. We can only keep ourselves safe by at least _appearing_ to have mended our ways. The attack on the Longbottoms was senseless, and I hope to goodness it doesn't turn out that you had something to do with it. The cause is lost, Cassius, and the sooner you realise that, the better for you."_

_The dark young man shifted uncomfortably, refusing to meet his friend's eye. _

"_You shouldn't talk like that, Lucius," he said, "If someone was to hear you..."_

"_Someone like me, for instance?" a voice spoke behind them, and the two men swung round to face a woman, perhaps a few years older than they were, and strikingly good looking, standing a short distance away. Lucius was clearly taken aback, and none too pleased, but he recovered quickly._

"_Bella," he said stiffly "I didn't realise that we were expecting you tonight."_

"_Oh really?" she smiled, and the smile was beautiful and full of warmth, but Lucius knew his sister-in-law well, and was aware that that charming smile hid a level of madness and cruelty that was surpassed only by that of the Dark Lord himself._

"_But my dear Lucius," she went on, "Why should I not come to a party in my own sister's house?" she looked round the room, "Oh, but wait. I see. You seem to have avoided inviting your Death Eater friends. Are Cassius and I the only ones here? Why, Lucius, anyone would think that you were ashamed of us..."_

_Lucius Malfoy gritted his teeth._

"_As I have just explained, Bella..."_

"_You are protecting your family," she said, in a bored voice, "Yes, yes. How sweet. But you know, you cannot protect them from _me_, Lucius. I am your wife's sister. You son's aunt. Taking me off your guest list does not change that."_

"_In that case," Cassius Morrison broke in, "Perhaps Lucius should have invited Andromeda as well. After all, you are _her_ sister too. And _her_ daughter's aunt, as well as Draco's..."_

_The false smile disappeared, and Bellatrix Lestrange's eyes narrowed dangerously._

"_I don't think you're in a position to talk about family, _Cassius_," she said, "Considering your own... That was a secret you managed to keep from the Dark Lord, wasn't it? It was bad enough that you had a sister in the Order, but if he had known about the squib... Well, you're lucky I didn't tell him, aren't you?"_

_Cassius raised his eyebrows._

"_I'm afraid, Bella, that you clearly weren't quite as trusted by the Dark Lord as you may have thought. You see, he knew perfectly well that my sister was a squib..."_

_She sneered._

"_Nonsense. You think he would have let her live? Pureblood families cannot be contaminated in that way. He would have ordered you to kill her the moment he found out."_

"_And what makes you think that he didn't?" Cassius asked, although he did not seem entirely confident in his own story._

_She smiled patronisingly._

"_The fact that both you and she are still alive, Cassius. If he had ordered you to kill her, then why wouldn't you have done it?"_

"_Why does it matter?" Lucius asked, impatiently, "The Dark Lord is gone, Bella..."_

_Her eyes flashed._

"_Gone, but not dead. He will return, Lucius, and then you will pay the price for doubt," she turned to Cassius, "And you, Cassius. You profess to feel regret. You call yourself loyal, and swear to continue the cause. And yet your squib of a sister still lives..."_

"_That is no concern of yours, Bella."_

"_Oh, but it is," she said, her eyes alight with malice, "It is the concern of every pureblood witch or wizard. I intend to do the Dark Lord's work until he returns. Will you help me, Cassius?"_

_Cassius folded his arms across his chest._

"_I have said that I am loyal, and I hold by that. I do not think that killing a single squib would have been at the top of the Dark Lord's agenda, though."_

"_I disagree," said Bella smoothly, "Every individual death is a triumph. Our lord wished such aberrations to be exterminated. I will continue his work. It is easy to be loyal when times are good, is it not? But only the most devoted remain through the hard times. _Now, _when all seems lost,__ is the time to prove your loyalty, Cassius Morrison. _

_"Where is it that your sister lives again?"_

_

* * *

_

_Theresa pulled out the folder with the index in, glanced round to make sure that no-one was around, and opened it. She ran her finger down the list. No... there was the odd dog, but no large black breeds... A border collie... a dalmation... but nothing big and black._

_She slid the folder back, and pulled out the next section of the alphabet. She had to be quick; she was not supposed to be doing this... _

_She was not really sure why she had agreed to this; she should simply have reported it. But Flora could be very persuasive, and so Theresa Morrison found herself risking her precious job by looking up all the registered Animagi in Britain, in search of black dogs._

_But she had not got very far down the list when she heard an incredulous voice behind her._

"_Theresa?"_

_Guiltily, she spun round and came face to face with the last person she wanted to see; Arlene Grubb, her boss. _

_Theresa thought quickly. Once, she had been a Slytherin, and wriggling out of unpleasant situations had come naturally to her. But she had squashed that side of herself down over the years, and for a moment, she wavered. _

_A moment too long. Suspicion had already appeared on Arlene's face. _

_It seemed to Theresa that however long you wore a new name; however long you kept your head down and worked your hardest and made yourself as un-extraordinary as possible, you could never throw off people's expectations. She knew that her work had been exemplary for more than twenty years, and she would have said that Arlene liked her._

_But prejudice ran both ways in the Wizarding World, and Theresa had been born a Parkinson; not even a Death Eater family, but one of the rich pureblood families of the old type, which immediately made them potential Death Eaters. In these times, it would take only one small incident for Arlene Grubb to make assumptions about Theresa's sympathies, even if it was something as seemingly harmless as being caught checking through the Animagi registers._

_Theresa took a deep breath. Mentally, she apologised to Flora. There was no help for it; she would not risk her job for some hunch of her daughter's. _

"_Arlene, do you know of an Animagus who takes the form of a large black dog? Because I think there may be one in Barnstaple, but I don't think they're registered..."_

_

* * *

_

_The lane was in darkness. The boy who came down it looked rather nervous, and moved surreptitiously, as though he were not really supposed to be there. At the end, he stood uncertainly, glancing around himself. _

_The figure who materialised beside him was taller than he was, but they were similar enough for it to be clear that they were brothers. _

"_Cass!" the first boy exclaimed._

"_Ssh!" his brother hissed angrily, "Don't be a little fool, Hector! Shouting my name out..."_

"_Sorry," Hector lowered his voice, "Cass, what's the matter? Why did you have to meet me out here? Why can't you just come to the house...?"_

_The young man sneered._

"_I think Dad made it perfectly clear that he never wanted to see me in the house again."_

"_Yes, but if you'd just..." the boy broke off at the expression on his oldest brother's face. It was clear that Cassius would not be open to persuasion._

"_Anyway, I haven't got long," Cassius, too, glanced around himself, and Hector wondered, a little uneasily, exactly what his brother got up to these days; he never had much time to spare, and always seemed worried about somebody finding him._

"_Listen, Hector," Cassius continued urgently, "You have to warn Flora, okay? She... she's in danger. There's nothing I can do about it, except warn her. She should speak to Tanya; get some sort of protection from that bloody Order of theirs. That's what they're into, isn't it? Protecting squibs and Mudbloods...?"_

_Hector stared at his brother in astonishment._

"_I thought you hated Flora! I thought that was what the whole row was about; you asked Dad why he let a squib into the house? Why he allowed her to contaminate the family?"_

_Cassius glowered at his brother._

"_As far as I'm concerned, she's a blot on the family!" he snarled, "She's a bloody embarrassment! I don't know why they didn't just leave her with the Muggles, where she belonged, when she was a kid. But that doesn't mean I want her dead..."_

"_Dead?" Hector exclaimed in shock, but Cassius ignored him._

"_I may not like it much, but she _is_ my sister, and family is important, whatever... some people say. So, just tell her, okay? Tell her they know where she works, and that she mustn't leave work without some sort of protection, okay? But not a word about me, right? If anyone knows I had anything to do with this, I'm as good as dead too!"_

_And with that, he was gone, leaving a shocked Hector staring after him._

_What was he going to do? How did Cassius think Hector was going to warn Flora without mentioning him? She would want to know how on earth he knew. And she already suspected him of being involved with the Death Eaters; if he were to warn her, she would think she had confirmation. He could not do that! He could not bring suspicion on himself! Cassius could not have thought of that, or he would not have suggested it. Even if he admitted where he had got the information from, he would have to admit that he had, yet again, met up with Cassius._

_Was Flora really in danger? He could not quite believe it. Flora was so... ordinary. She was not like Tanya, who did secret, dangerous stuff all the time. She went about her ordinary business is a blessedly normal way. You could always rely on Flora. Surely she could not have attracted the notice of the Death Eaters? She was no threat. Cassius must be worrying needlessly. Who on earth would target Flora Morrison?_

_Hector was so wrapped up in his own thoughts as he went back up the lane, that he did not notice a smaller figure slip out from the shadows and follow him, and he never knew that his brother Ben had overheard every word..._

_

* * *

_

_Sirius had had a slightly overwhelming afternoon. It was really bizarre what these Muggles thought up. He began to see what some people found so interesting about Muggle Studies; if they had studied this sort of thing for OWLs, he might have paid more attention. Although, if he was honest, he probably wouldn't have done, even then..._

_He wondered whether Muggle children were more boisterous than Wizarding ones, or whether he had just forgotten his own childhood. Joe's classmates had been delighted to see him, and had swarmed all over him, shrieking in his ears, pulling his fur and poking their fingers in his eyes._

_Joe's teacher had made up for it slightly; she was an attractive young woman, who liked dogs, and had made a great fuss of him. Sirius had rather enjoyed having her rub his ears and tell him he was gorgeous._

_The play itself was simply rather confusing. A lot of the children were inaudible, even to Sirius' canine hearing. The plot seemed a bit thin on the ground, and it was interrupted by what appeared to be pointless song and dance routines. Sirius had no idea what the point of it all was, except for the parents to see their children standing awkwardly on stage, and listen to them delivering their lines, either in a terrified whisper, or with a broad and inappropriate grin on their faces. _

_Joe seemed to enjoy it, though, and was fizzing with excitement all the way home. Indeed, it was all Maureen could do to get him to walk down the street, even though she reminded him that the lady from the vet's was coming to look at Sirius._

_The light had faded before they arrived at the house, and for some reason, Sirius had the feeling that something was wrong; the hairs on the back of his neck stood on end, as though someone was watching them._

_The fair-haired nurse, however, had arrived before them, and Maureen was effusive in her apologies, but the young woman smiled and said it did not matter at all._

_She was another attractive young woman, although a little too old for him, Sirius thought critically. But he certainly had no objections to being 'examined' by her. He wondered, with a mental grin, what she would say if she knew that he was really a human._

_But they never got as far as an examination. _

_They never even got as far as the house. _

_Sirius was suddenly aware that his feeling of being watched had increased sharply, and his nose was picking up the scents of several people. Some of them were strangers. One of them, though, he knew; and his hackles rose as he growled suddenly._

_Everyone looked at him in astonishment, but he was paying no attention to them. He was entirely focussed on the trees that lined the fence. _

_With a sudden snarl, he launched himself, but he was too late. _

_Several figures appeared around them on the lawn, and they all had wands. A spell hit him, knocking him sideways but doing no further damage. _

_As he rolled, he almost transformed, but stopped himself just in time. He was more use as a dog. This way, he had teeth; as a human, he did not even have a wand. And whoever these were, they were unlikely to know that he was an Animagus, which gave him a slight advantage._

_All that passed through his head in the instant it took for him to be on his feet again. He had just time to realise that Maureen seemed to have been hit with a spell (he could only hope that it was not the Killing Curse), that Joe was screaming and that the Nurse had not reacted with the total terror and astonishment that he would have expected from a Muggle, before he launched himself once more. _

_But he did not stand a chance against several wands, and it was with mingled rage and despair that he attacked. _

_Those feelings turned to surprise, though, as more figures appeared from the bushes, aiming spells at the first group... had they managed to get themselves caught in the crossfire of two other groups? What was going on?_

_Somebody – he thought it might have been the nurse – yelled "Mind the dog!"_

_But then somebody else called "That's no dog! He's an Animagus!" and Sirius' blood ran cold. Whatever happened, it looked as though his game was up._

_In the shock of that moment, he stood still for a second too long. Another spell hit him, and this one hurt. With a yelp, he was flung over on his side again, feeling blood pouring from a sudden deep gash along his side, and a small voice close to him said "Sirius!"_

_He felt Joe's hands on him as darkness closed in, and saw a terrified little face peering down at him. Despair washed over him. It was over. He was either going to die here and now, or he was going to be captured and sent back to Azkaban. He would prefer the first option, but he probably wouldn't get the choice... And Joe and Maureen... what would happen to them? If these were Death Eaters..._

_In the moment before he lost consciousness, another face joined Joe's; that of the fair-haired nurse, who was staring down in disbelief._

_As if from far away, he heard her voice._

"What_ did you just call him, kid?"_


	21. Breaking In

**A/N: Well folks, I'm finally back! they say absence makes the heart grow fonder, but I have a feeling I've probably lost most of my readers in the weeks since I updated :-( **

**I'm really really sorry that I seemed to have abandoned this story, but I do have the excuse that in the meantime I've spent two months teaching English in Italy. I'm working all day and staying with host families, so I can't spend much time writing or on the internet. On the up side, I've had an incredible two months! I'm still in Italy for the next few weeks, but am snatching an afternoon in an internet cafe and - finally - updating.**

**I don't think this is a very good chapter, and I apologise. A long gap isn't good for my writing, and I'm feeling a bit rusty. **

**Thanks so much to everyone who reviewed the last chapter - it's been so long and life's been so busy that I have no idea whether I replied to you all or not. If I didn't, I'm sorry.**

**Anyway, here it is and I hope some of you are still interested enough to read and review, and that you'll forgive me for the long absence. Please reassure me by leaving a review. I would promise brownies, but I'm in Italy, so it had better be gelato instead.**

* * *

The passage was dark and smelled of earth and must. Rose lit her wand and they looked dubiously at it. Lily touched the wall, and a small trickle of pebbles ran down it, with a rattle that sounded loud in the small space.

"Are you sure this is safe, Louis?" she asked doubtfully.

He shrugged.

"Well, we used it all the time when we were at school. It never fell in on us. Or did you mean, would we get caught? Because I don't think anyone but us knew about it."

Lily had been talking about the roof caving in, and opened her mouth to say so, but Rose gave a mirthless laugh.

"Oh, yes," she said dryly, "That would be because you and James and your crowd had the Marauder's Map, right? So none of the other students in _our_ time knew the passages. But let's just remember who had the map in 1994…"

There was a moment's silence, then Lily giggled suddenly.

"That would be interesting, wouldn't it? If we came face to face with Dad in a secret passage!"

"It'll be fine," Louis said impatiently, "Why would he use a secret passage on a Hogsmeade day? Everyone's down here anyway!"

There was logic behind what he said, and they were here now anyway, so, feeling fairly apprehensive, they started up the passage.

Louis, who knew the route, took the lead. Lily came next, as Rose insisted on bringing up the rear. Lily, of course, still had Cuthbert on the lead. He was not quite sure of this dark, damp place, and kept close beside her, for which she was glad. He could be quite badly behaved on a lead, and this was not the time for him to start acting up.

"You know," she said, after a minute or two, her voice sounding strange and hollow in the darkness, "I sort of wish we _could_ have a look at them. I mean, it's so weird, isn't it, to be here, where our parents are kids? If someone had told me a year ago this was going to happen, I'd have said it was impossible, but we're here. It seems like a waste to disappear without even catching a glimpse of them."

"A bit too weird, almost," Louis's voice came from in front of her, "I'm not sure I really want to see my mum as a seventeen-year-old... It's just bizarre! But maybe you're just getting used to time travelling, Lily. This is the third time you've managed to get to, after all. Personally, I'm still quite freaked out by it all."

"But still," Lily persisted, after a pause, "I wish we could. Our parents are what, thirteen, fourteen? It would be fun to meet them..."

"Yeah, brilliant idea," said Rose sarcastically, "I can just see it. 'Hello kids, don't mind us. We're just your children. Carry on with what you were doing.' Why don't we go and see Sirius while we're about it? He's around in this time, isn't he? He can tell us how we manage to get him back... to our time..." her voice changed and she trailed off. Ahead of her, Lily and Louis stopped too, and looked back. They could see that they were all thinking the same thing.

"That... isn't the worst idea I've ever heard," said Louis, neutrally.

Lily swallowed. The idea of seeing her teenage parents was merely funny, if a little odd, but she wasn't at all sure she liked the idea of seeing a thirty four-year-old Sirius... A Sirius who had gone through twelve years of... what? Would they find that he had spent twelve years in their own time, and then come back here to complete the story, or would they discover that they would never get him back, and that he had somehow spent the twelve years in hiding? Either way, he was going to be fourteen years older than her, and she wasn't sure she could quite cope with that idea.

With slight dismay, she realised that she was desperately missing the Sirius she knew. She wanted to see _that_ Sirius, not somebody who would almost be a stranger. Somebody who _knew_ about whatever future they had together...

No, she had to stop thinking like that. There could be no future _together_, even if they found him and took him back. She simply had to nip it in the bud, as Louis had said.

But she wished she could see him anyway.

By the time they reached the top of the passage, Louis' pace had slowed and he was limping. They paused before the door into Hogwarts, and Rose looked anxiously at him.

"I don't think you should be walking on that ankle, but there's not a lot we can do. Can you make it any further?"

He nodded curtly.

"I'm fine."

"Well, we're nearly there anyway. Maybe we could get whoever's in charge of the Hospital Wing these days to look at it."

They walked up a corridor that was both very familiar and completely alien, getting funny looks from the odd bunch of students. They were all younger kids, of course, because the older ones were still down in Hogsmeade, which was, Lily thought, quite fortunate. First and second years did not dare to challenge a group of adults, however strange they looked. It might have been a different matter if they had met a prefect or two.

Louis hung back behind the two girls, although Lily wasn't sure it was really enough; Fleur Delacour had been very distinctive in terms of looks, and Louis really did take after her. Hopefully, if anyone did notice the marked resemblance, they would simply assume that Louis was a member of Fleur's family, come to visit, and to watch part of the tournament perhaps. She vaguely remembered hearing that Louis' Aunt Gabi had been there for one of the challenges, so there was no real reason why another relative should not turn up.

Louis, looking more closely at a group of small Hufflepuffs, suddenly grinned, despite the pain in his ankle, and nudged Lily.

"Bit rude, don't you think?"

Lily followed his gaze to the children, who were now level with them, and going past with a few wide-eyed stares. To their discomfiture, she glared at them, and then at Louis.

"Bloody little..."

Rose grinned too.

"Now Lily, no hexing them. They're only kids."

"I'm not James," Lily pointed out, "But still..." she glared again at their retreating backs.

"They're not actually referring to _you_," Rose added, "And I very much doubt that they came up with it themselves."

"I know," Lily grinned reluctantly, "I think it's a good thing James isn't here though. I don't think he'd take too kindly to people walking round with badges that say 'Potter stinks.'"

"Not exactly the wittiest insult, is it?" Louis commented, "You'd have thought somebody could have done better than that. Do you remember when we charmed the blackboard chalk in the Transfiguration classroom to write insults about the Slytherins? We came up with some pretty colourful things..."

Rose laughed.

"Of course I remember. I had Transfiguration that morning; with the Slytherins as well! We all just sat there pissing ourselves laughing while the teachers tried to undo it. It took them about half an hour, and then they couldn't erase the last insult. It was 'Slytherins all shag sheep,' which admittedly, is one step up from 'Potter Stinks,' but still isn't _that_ witty, Lou."

Louis grinned, unfazed.

"That was one of James'. He wanted to put 'Slytherins all shag snakes,' at first, but we decided that they might not realise that that was an insult. We had much better ones than that though."

"Well, it was pretty funny, even if it wasn't that original," Rose admitted, "Malfoy and the others just sat there, glaring at us and pretending they couldn't see it. Didn't you all get about a month's detention for that one?"

"Something like that," Louis agreed, "What they seemed most angry about was the language we'd used, because we'd put it where little first years like Lily and Hugo might have seen it."

"I should think it would just have gone over first years' heads," Rose objected, "They wouldn't have even known what most of those words meant, would you, Lily?"

"_I _would," Lily retorted, "I lived with James! And I'd have thought Hugo would too, being _your_ brother!"

"Oh, no," Rose assured her, with a grin, "Hugo was as innocent as a baby lamb; Mum made sure of that. He was her precious baby boy, and if I'd sworn in front of him she would probably have charmed my mouth shut for a week. I definitely didn't use bad language at home."

They made their way up a flight of stairs, automatically skipping the trick steps.

"This is actually really dangerous," Rose commented, "Having those secret passages, I mean. _Anyone_ could just walk into Hogwarts!"

"Only if they knew about the passages," Louis pointed out.

"Yeah, but anyone could find them, couldn't they? I bet more students know about them than you think, Louis, even without the map. The Marauders can't be the only people to find them off their own bat. And there are plenty of ex-students you wouldn't want wondering around the corridors, especially in this time."

"Sirius Black, for instance," Louis said with a grin, "Didn't he manage to get in at one point, and scare the shit out of your dad, Rose?"

Rose laughed.

"Yes, Dad still tells that story. But Sirius was hardly a _real_ threat..."

"I don't know," Lily said, "I reckon this place is probably better protected than we ever realised. Dad said something about it once. And when Dumbledore was here, everyone said it was the safest place you could be, didn't they? I should think Dumbledore protected the school a lot more than _anyone_ knew, really."

"We just walked in," Louis pointed out, "And like I said, so did Sirius. Last year, the way we are at the moment. And he was the most wanted man in the country..."

"Yes, but like Rose said, Sirius wasn't a real threat, and we know now that Dumbledore must have known that. And we're not a threat either. I don't know. I'm just saying that Albus Dumbledore _was _one of the greatest wizards ever. I'm sure he wouldn't have let people who meant harm just walk in through the secret passages."

They turned the corner onto the corridor on which Dumbledore's office was situated, and Rose stopped abruptly.

"Ssh!" she hissed, although the other two weren't talking, "Listen! There are people coming!"

There were, and the people sounded like teachers. They darted back round the corner and listened. It was Dumbledore, and he had several people with him. Rose muttered a disillusionment charm on herself, and stuck her head round the corner.

Minerva McGonagall was with him, and there was a man she recognised only too well; his portrait was up on the walls of the Auror office, although it was a slightly controversial one. A lot of people said that his actions, both during his time as an Auror and later on, meant that Barty Crouch Sr should have no place among the ranks of great Aurors. The other three people were not figures she recognised. There were two other men, and a huge woman who towered over all of them.

"Yes, yes, the preparations for the next challenge are well underway," one of the unknown men was saying, sounding rather excited about it, "I must say that I think this one is going to be excellent! The whole thing is going terribly well, wouldn't you agree, Barty? Four very worthy champions, as they proved against the dragons! Of course, the next one is going to be a little harder..."

"But of course we cannot tell you any more than that," Crouch interrupted firmly, stopping the excitable man in mid flow, "We will inform you of the next stages in good time. But it seems that your other safety measures are holding, Albus, which we must be grateful for. And now, we must be going..."

"Ah yes. Important business to attend to, I expect, eh Barty?" said the other man jovially, "Things busy in your department, are they?"

"Tolerably so," Crouch said stiffly, "And I've only left young Wilson in charge. We'll be in touch, Albus."

He and the excitable man took their leave and disappeared off down a side corridor that Rose knew lead to the entrance hall. She hoped that the others would also leave, leaving them to approach Dumbledore freely, but unfortunately they all continued together. For a horrible moment, Rose thought they were coming round the corner towards her, but then they took a small passage off to the left. As the voices faded, she looked grimly back at the others.

"Well, that's that," she said, "Dumbledore isn't in his office, and Merlin knows when he's coming back. We can't go up to him while he's got those others with him. And now we're stuck in the middle of Hogwarts, with all the kids coming back from Hogsmeade any time now. Feels weird, doesn't it?" she added, "Being in Hogwarts and not belonging. I mean, we can't even go into the Common Room, because we don't know the password. There isn't a passage right into the Common Room, is there, Louis?"

Louis shook his head.

"Not that I know of."

"How would it help, anyway?" Lily asked.

Rose shrugged.

"It probably wouldn't. But I was thinking vaguely about your dad's invisibility cloak..."

"Yeah, you said before," Lily said impatiently, "We should have brought it with us. But we didn't, so..."

"But right now," Rose pointed out, "It's in the Gryffindor boys' dormitory. At least I assume it is..."

For a moment, they stared at each other. Lily was not entirely sure what Rose was thinking. The cloak would be useful, because they must at all costs avoid being seen by the wrong people in Hogwarts. But was it worth the risk of breaking into the Gryffindor Common Room, even if they could achieve such a thing? Surely there were other ways to hide? Lily knew that Rose was better than she was in this sort of situation and that her cousin was both quick-thinking and practical. But she also had an uncomfortably James-like attraction to adventure and danger. Her three years of Auror training had given her more discipline, but Lily suspected that Rose simply liked the idea of sneaking into the Common Room that had been theirs, and seeing it as it was when their parents lived there.

However, Louis' eyes had lit up, and the two of them were now talking eagerly about seeing the Common Room, and other rooms in the school, which had been very familiar to them in their own time but which had now taken on the feeling of a mythical world to be explored.

"We may as well go and have a look at the Portrait Hole, anyway," Louis suggested. Lily refrained from asking how exactly this would help them right now. It would not, and Louis knew that it would not, but he wanted to go anyway. If she was honest, she quite liked the idea herself. There was little else they could do anywaym, until they could reach Dumbledore, and it would be fun if they _did_ see anybody they recognised, although less fun if they were recognised themselves. Anyway, there was little point arguing with either Rose or Louis once they had an idea in their heads.

Which was how they ended up hiding behind a statue opposite, and a little way down the corridor from, the Gryffindor Portrait Hole, listening intently to a pair of voices coming their way, who sounded considerably older than the first and second years they had encountered so far.

"People back from Hogsmeade!" exclaimed Rose in a whisper.

"What do we do?" demanded Lily, panicking.

"Nothing," murmured Rose, "Just stay quiet and hope they don't look this way."

They were all aware that the four of them did not really fit behind the statue, and that various body parts were uncomfortably visible. Lily had just time to think that there was something strangely familiar about the voices, when they came around the corner. They were two boys of about sixteen, and she recognised them instantly

"I'm telling you," the first one was saying, "I think it can work. We've got some great stuff. All that shit Zonko's sells - it's cool, but it's all a bit old. There's nothing new; nothing creative; nothing like we've got. People'll go crazy for it!"

"Yeah, but that's no good, is it, if we don't even have the money to buy the crap, let alone a shop to sell it from?"

Behind the statue, the three cousins looked at each other.

"Uncle George!" Rose breathed.

"And Uncle Fred," Lily murmured, her voice hushed.

They stared silently out from their hiding place at the uncle none of them had ever met; the uncle who had died in these very corridors, at the age of just twenty.

"If only that bastard Bagman had paid up," one of them was saying gloomily.

"Yeah, well. He isn't going to. We may as well give up on that one. Come on. Let's go and see if we get that exploding chewing gum working; if we could get something on the market, we could start to earn a bit."

They stopped at the portrait hole.

"Pink Campion," one of them said, in tones of deep despair. The picture swung open, and the two red-haired boys disappeared inside.

Behind them, their nieces and nephew looked at each other again.

"Well, now we know the password," said Lily.

"Yes, but unfortunately our uncles are probably sitting in the common room," Rose pointed out.

"And the Fat Lady probably wouldn't let us in anyway," Louis added, "She won't recognise us."

"Wouldn't make any difference," Rose corrected him, "If we have the password, she has to let us in. She doesn't have a choice. The problem is that she could go and raise the alarm afterwards. We'd have to persuade her we weren't a threat."

"Are we actually thinking about doing this?" Lily askefd doubtully.

"Well, what else are we going to do?" Rose asked.

"But like you said, Fred and George and however many other people could be sitting the other side of the portrait."

"No, they're not," Louis pointed out, "They said they were going to work on some product. They're not going to do that in the common room, are they?"

"Exploding chewing gum," Lily said with a giggle, distracted for a moment, "That's one of their best sellers. Remember when you dared James to swallow some, Lou, and he ended up in St Mungo's?"

"Well, I never thought he'd do it, the idiot," Louis complained, "I still think the punishment I got for that was harsh; I didn't _make_ him do it, but I got all the shit and he got all the sympathy"

"Yeah well, you managed to get Uncle George banned from giving us freebies, so we _all _got punished really. And James didn't get that much sympathy; Mum told him that if, by the age of fifteen, he didn't know better than to swallow something with 'exploding' in the title, he deserved everything he got."

"Funny though that incident was," Rose interupted, "Can we get back to the important things please?"

They looked once more at the portrait hole, and the Fat Lady, who was smiling peacefully to herself.

"Do we risk it?" Louis asked. He seemed to have forgotten about the pain in his ankle, and both he and Rose had gleams in their eyes. Lily sighed, and wished that she wasn't with two people as fond of risk taking as Rose and Louis. It could have been worse though, she told herself; James could have been here.

"Let's do it," Rose decided, "If we can get the cloak, we can move around as much as we want without getting caught."

"We won't all fit underneath it," Louis pointed out.

"No, but you two will at a squeeze. You're the ones who really mustn't be seen; I've got Dad's hair, but otherwise I look like Grandad Granger's side of the family, and even that's not strong. You two hide under the cloak, and I'll walk as though I'm supposed to be here, and if anyone does stop me, I'll say I'm here to see Dumbledore."

She didn't stop for any more conversation, but strode forwards towards the portrait hole. Louis and Lily looked at each other, and Louis raised an eyebrow.

"Well, here we go," he whispered with a grin.

Rose stopped in front of the Fat Lady, her hands on her hips. The Fat Lady looked suspiciously at her.

"Yes? Can I help you?"

"Pink Campion," said Rose, firmly.

The Fat Lady looked panicky.

"How did you get that password? Who are you? You can't come in!"

"Yes, I can," Rose said gently, "I know the password, so I can come in. But it's okay, honestly. I'm a Gryffindor..."

The Fat Lady interupted, drawing herself up proudly.

"Don't you try that on me, young lady. Do you think I don't know the people in my own house? I've never seen you before, and you're too old to be at school anyway. You're an intruder!"

Her voice had risen, and Lily looked around nervously, in case there was anyone within earshot.

"That's true," said Rose calmly, "But I am a Gryffindor, you know," She reached into her pocket and pulled out the broken Time Turner, "I just don't come from this time. I've come from the future. Dumbledore knows," she told the lie without batting an eyelid, "but nobody else does, except you. I'm trusting you, because in my time, I know you, and I know you can be trusted..."

The Fat Lady was looking mollified at this compliment, but she was still suspicious.

"What do you want in the common room?"

"We have to find something," Rose explained, "It's okay, honestly. We're taking it to Dumbledore. He gave us the password."

Teddy Lupin had once upset Rose greatly when she was a child by saying she belonged in Slytherin, because she was such a good liar. At times like this, Lily almost had to agree with him. The lies came out of Rose's mouth so easily that Lily was almost convinced herself.

"Why wasn't I told?" the Fat Lady asked, but she was wavering.

"There wasn't time," Rose explained, "It's urgent. But Dumbledore will come and explain everything later. For now, you just have to let us in quietly, and not tell anyone we were here. I'm sorry about this, but it really is important."

"If I don't see Dumbledore later, I'll be going to him myself," the Fat Lady warned.

"You will see him," Rose reassured her with a smile, and with one last worried look, the Fat Lady swung open. Rose beckoned to the other two, and the Fat Lady's worried look increased as she saw more figures approaching. Then, as she saw them properly, her mouth fell open.

"I told you we came from the future," Rose told her gently, but the Fat Lady simply stared, evidently nonplussed by the idea that her 'intruders' might really be visitors from the future.

The Common Room was empty, to Lily's immense relief. Fred and George must have gone up to the dormitories, and most people were still in Hogsmeade.

"Right," said Rose briskly, "We need to be quick and quiet. We don't want anyone to find us in here..." she broke off suddenly, with a noise like a yelp. The others stared at her in alarm, and then followed her gaze towards the fire.

When she saw what was there, Lily felt her insides freeze and her head spin. Because there, in the middle of the flames, was a familiar face. He was considerably older than the last time she had seen him, but he was unmistakable.

Sirius.

For a moment, he simply stared at them, apparently as shocked as they were.

"S... Sirius?" Rose spluttered.

Sirius was now looking horrified, and slightly panicked.

"Fucking hell! What in Merlin's name are you lot doing here? I..." he looked around at them, as if seeing them properly for the first time, "Oh, fucking Merlin. I should have known. You're not even... Bloody hell, you're from 2028, arent you?"

They continued to stare at him. Lily felt as though she had just put a lemon in her mouth; it had gone dry and her throat had constricted, and she couldn't have said a word if her life had depended upon it.

Of all the shocks she had had in the last few hours, this was the greatest, and yet it should not have been. They had known that, somewhere in the year 1994, an older Sirius existed. They had even talked lightly of finding him. But now that she was face to face with him, she found it almost unbearable, and thought, with a sudden flash of insight, that this must be how Sirius himself had felt when he had arrived in her own time and encountered her father.

Rose, predictably, recovered first.

"Yes. But where are _you_ from?"

Sirius laughed mirthlessly.

"That's a good question, isn't it? It's probably one I musn't answer. After all, you never told me you'd met me in the Gryffindor common room..."

He broke off.

"So we _do_ see you again," remarked Rose, "Well, that's reassuring. Any chance you're going to tell us how to find you? The you we lost into 1981, that is."

Sirius shook his head.

"Well, I would if I could. But you never even told me you'd met me, so who knows how much of the rest of the story you missed out? Bloody hell," he said again suddenly, looking wildly from one to the other, "I... I haven't seen any of you for..." he thought about it, "months, and I didn't expect... well, let's just say this is a little bizarre. You're not the you I left behind either," he looked a little annoyed, "_Why_ couldn't you have told me you met me?"

"Well, probably because you just told us we didn't," Rose pointed out.

Sirius groaned.

"Don't say things like that. It makes my head feel as though it's going to explode. How can things have happened before they happen? It doesn't make sense. And don't try and explain it," he added, as Rose opened her mouth, "However many times you explain it, it still doesn't make any kind of sense. And it's hard enough to keep my head together right now without trying to think about the ins and outs of time dimensions."

"What are you doing here anyway? Isn't it a bit dangerous for you?" Rose asked.

"I could say exactly the same thing to you," he smiled wryly, "_I'm _waiting for my godson to come back from Hogsmeade, but I can't think of any reason at all for you to be here."

"We thought it would be fun," said Rose simply, and his smile turned into a grin; his grin, at least, had not changed much.

"I might have known you'd do something mad!"

"You can bloody well talk!" retorted Rose indignantly, but Louis interrupted, bringing the conversation back to practical matters.

"Sirius, did we ever tell you that the Time Turner broke?"

Sirius looked thoughtful.

"Yes, you said that. But all you said was that you mended it the Muggle way."

Rose glared at him.

"The _Muggle_ way? What the hell's that supposed to mean?"

"I don't know," he looked irritated, "You said it. I'm just the messenger."

"How on earth would a _Muggle_ mend a Time Turner?" Rose went on furiously, "It doesn't make sense."

Lily found that she had found her voice again, although she still could not look at Sirius. He seemed to be avoiding her eyes as well, or perhaps that was just her imagination. But she would not think about, and spoke hastily to cover the inner turmoil.

"Super glue," she said.

"_What_?" Rose snapped, "What's that? It sounds like something Uncle George would sell."

Lily rolled her eyes.

"Honestly, Rosie. Your _grandparents_ are Muggles. Don't you know anything about them? Super glue is what Muggles mend things with. It's supposed to stick anything. And it really pretty much does. When we looked at it in Muggle Studies, Anita Wendyke from Hufflepuff glued herself to the desk with it by mistake, and they had to use some really complicated spell to get it off. But I don't know if it would work here. It seems too simple to be true..."

Louis looked interested.

"You mean normal magic can't do it? Muggles come up with some amazing stuff, don't they? I wish I'd known about that stuff when I was a kid; we could have had great fun with it."

"You should have taken Muggle Studies, then, shouldn't you?" Lily retorted.

"Look, this isn't very helpful, unless you can think of some way to get hold of some of this stuff. Even if it would work, which I don't believe," said Rose, "If spells don't work, some Muggle stuff's hardly going to, is it?"

"Well, Sirius said we mended the Time Turner the Muggle way," Louis argued, "And Lily knows more about the Muggle ways than any of us. It's worth a try, isn't it?"

"There'll be some in the Muggle Studies classroom, I should think," Lily put in.

"We should get out of here, anyway," said Louis, "People could walk in at any moment."

"The cloak..." began Rose, but at that moment, voices were heard, coming from the dormitories and getting closer; Fred and George appeared to be coming back.

"Come on!" hissed Rose, "Quickly!" she turned to Sirius, "Thanks for the help, Sirius. See you in a bit, I hope."

"Wait a second!" Sirius said urgently, "Listen. When you go back to 1981... have your wands ready, okay?"

"What?" Rose demanded, "Why?"

"No time. Just trust me," for the first time, he looked at Lily, and she saw a desperate sadness in his eyes. There was something else too, that she couldn't quite place, and suddenly she did not want to leave him here. He might not be quite the Sirius she knew - he was a good ten years older - but she didn't want to say goodbye, not knowing whether she would see _any _version of him again, leaving him in this time, where in a year or two... he would be dead.

She felt a sudden panicky feeling, as if she really were saying goodbye forever, but she had no time to stop and think. Rose had her arm and was towing her away. All she could do was call out an inadequate"Bye!" and her voice sounded weak and childlike in her own ears.

And then they were out of the portrait hole, and ignoring the Fat Lady's plaintive complaint as they hurried down the corridor out of sight.

She had not even heard whether he had replied or not, but the expression in his eyes lingered in her mind, although she did not know what it meant.

"Lily!" she blinked and found Rose shaking her arm, "Lil, pay attention, for Merlin's sake. This is no time to be off in your own little world. You need to find us some of the what's-it-called? Super goo."

* * *

**Please please review! I want to know that there are still people reading! I have another chapter almost finished, but I can't promise a quick update - I'm on my way to another camp this afternoon so I'll just have to see how it goes.**


	22. The Battle of Barnstaple

**A/N: Thank you, thank you, thank you for the reviews! They made me so happy -I honestly thought everyone would have forgotten me by now, so it was great to get so many people saying they'd missed the story, especially the people who were reviewing for the first time but had been reading from the start. So thank you ermireallydontcare, a j f a y e, , and arwenjanelilylyra - I had gelato cake this afternoon and it was amazing, so you can have a virtual piece of that each.**

**Ermireallydontcare - I'm very sorry that I couldn't fulfill your wish - I really wanted to, but it just wouldn't work in the story in the end :-(**

**Anyway, I'm working again this week so I don't know when I'll update again, but I hope you enjoy this one. Keep up the reviews please!**

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Flora Morrison was nervous. It was not an emotion she felt often, but she was definitely on edge as she parked her car outside the house she had come to visit. She was not entirely sure _why _she was afraid. Of course, what she was about to do had some risks to it. Her mother swore that the dog, if it was an Animagus, was unregistered, which meant that she was dealing with a law-breaker.

But the person - if it was a person, but Flora had seen the blood sample herself and didn't have much doubt - had no way of knowing who Flora was. They would assume that she was a Muggle, who had never so much as heard of an Animagus, and would not have believed in it if she had.

So as long as she made no move that gave her away, there was really nothing to be afraid of. In fact, she wasn't sure what she was trying to achieve by coming here. But she wanted to see it for herself. She had read her mother's books on Animagi, and she knew the things to look out for; the little human things that gave them away. She was fairly confident that she would be able to identify it, if it _was _an Animagus, and then... well, then she would decide what to do. Going to the Ministry was the obvious thing, but she had hesitations about that. Her mother might work for them, but Flora had decided reservations about the way the Ministry of Magic dealt with things. And from what she had seen of Wizarding Law, a lot of it was pretty stupid, and made for breaking.

For now, then, she would play the part of the Muggle nurse, and nobody would be any the wiser.

But all the same, she was nervous.

It might have something to do with the fact that for the last few days, she had had an uneasy feeling that something, somewhere, was wrong. Flora was a person who trusted her instinct, because it was usually right. It could have been because she was the sole non-magical person in a magical family, but her other sensitivities seemed stronger than was usual. Her 'feelings' usually turned out to have some grounding.

And this feeling had been increasing over the course of the past few days. When she had come out of work the previous night, she had had a prickly feeling in the back of her neck, as though she was being watched. She had had the same feeling a few times in the last week or so, and it made her uneasy.

She had had a strange conversation with Hector too. She had phoned home to speak to her mother (the family had a phone mainly for Flora's benefit) and her brother had answered the phone. He had been abrupt and had not seemed to want to talk, beyond telling her that Mum was out. But then, just as she had been about to hang up, he had said, "Flora, wait. There's something I've got to say to you."

"Oh," she had said, surprised by his tone of voice, "Okay. What is it?"

There had been silence for a moment.

"Hector?" she had said.

"Oh... nothing... it does't matter," he had mumbled, "I don't believe it anyway." And he had put the phone down, and she had had the strongest feeling yet that something was very wrong.

So she was nervous as she parked the car opposite the house she had come to visit, and it didn't help when she discovered that the family was out, even though she had made an appointment, and she had to wait outside. She tried to look through the window and see if she could catch a glimpse of the dog, but she could see nothing, so she returned to her car and waited, restlessly fingering her keys. The feeling that she was being watched had returned, but now she was not sure if it was real, or simply paranoia.

It was December, and the days were short, so it was already getting dark by the time the family returned, full of apologies for their lateness; they had been held up by the little boy's Christmas play at school. They had the dog with them too, which struck Flora as odd. Who took a stray dog to see a Nativity Play? But the kid seemed very attached to his new pet, which perhaps accounted for it. She felt a little worried by this; a possibly dangerous wizard should not be this close to an innocent little Muggle boy.

Anyway, she stayed polite, and assured them that their lateness did not matter, and that she quite understood how these things happen, and they began to walk up the path to the house. Flora eyed the dog carefully. It walked just like a dog, but its eyes were a very strange colour; she had never seen a dog with blue eyes before. And she knew that eye colour was one of the things most likely to remain the same when a person transformed into an animal. She had a nagging feeling that there was something familiar about those particular eyes too. They were not the eyes of somebody she knew personally, of that she was sure, but they were eyes she had seen... perhaps in a picture. Recently too... But where?

They never reached the house.

The figures came out of nowhere, and they had wands in the their hands.

Wands which were pointed at her, with intention that was certainly not benevolent.

For a split second, she froze. Then she flung herself sideways off the path, taking the little boy with her, the first spell missing them by inches.

Thanking whoever was up there for her good reflexes, she dodged another spell, and saw the dog launch itself at the attackers. Animagus or not, it was defending them.

But a stray spell had hit the woman, and the boy was screaming, and Flora had a sudden flooding return of the frustration and fury she had had as a child; the feelings she had so carefully stifled. She could never draw a wand; she was defenceless in a way that her younger brothers and sisters would never be.

She could do nothing to help. She had no weapon. All she could do was watch, and dodge. Even the bloody dog could do more than her!

And now, in the confusion of the dark garden, there was another group of figures, and she felt a great flood of relief because she recognised one of them; he was a friend of her father's and a member of the department for Magical Law Enforcement with her mother.

The Ministry had arrived.

The first group had turned their attention to their attackers, and Flora found herself lying on frosty grass, a little way from the action, disregarded. The child was sobbing wildly over his mother, and Flora staggered over to them, in time to see the Muggle woman, Mrs Ashby, open her eyes and struggle into a sitting position. Relieved, Flora crouched beside her. She was very white, but she was alive.

"Wh... what's happening?" she whispered, looking at Flora over the head of the little boy, terror in her voice and face. Flora shook her head, for she could not answer. She did not know what was happening.

The first group had been waiting for her, of that she was certain. They had been watching her, and waiting to strike. And they had waited until she was with a little boy and his mother, she realised with a flash of fury. Their spells had been aimed at her, but they had not cared whether or not they hit the Muggles. Flora knew about Lord Voldemort, but she had never felt at much personal risk from him. It was Tanya who was at risk, with that Order she was in, always fighting Death Eaters, even now that You-Know-Who had gone. And Flora had celebrated with the Wizarding World, back in October, and had thought that the bad times were over.

But there were still Death Eaters, and they still hated squibs. She wondered, with a sudden cold feeling, what Hector had wanted to tell her; what he might have known, and if he had known, _how _he had known. But she did not want to think thoughts like that about her little brother, so she pushed it away.

The Ministry... she did not know how the Ministry had got here so quickly, but she was glad they had. Perhaps they had had a tip-off; either about the Death Eaters or, she realised, about the unregistered Animagus.

But it was not over yet. The Ministry officers were being pressed hard. The dog, she saw, was still in the thick of it, but it did not have a wand...

The garden was in chaos. In the darkness, she could not be sure who was a friend and who an enemy, and at any moment an errant spell could come their way. She saw, with cold horror, a green bolt hit one figure, and that figure crumple to the ground. She might be a squib, but she knew what a Killing Curse looked like, and that, surely, must have been fired by a Death Eater.

"Watch out for the dog!" she heard the voice of her father's friend shout from close by; the Ministry were not attempting to hit innocents, but they had no idea...

"That's no dog!" she called, "It's an Animagus!"

Both warnings came too late, however. At that moment, she saw a bolt of light - not green, but red - hit the dog's side and fling it towards them. The heavy black body landed on their side of the path and, before Flora could stop him, the little boy had jumped up and flung himself at the dog with a shriek of horror.

But it was not just a wordless shriek. The little boy had called a name. And Flora suddenly knew, with a flood of pure horror, where she had seen those eyes before.

The little boy had called the dog Sirius.

And Flora had last seen eyes of exactly that colour and expression staring out of the Daily Prophet on her parents' kitchen table, as the news broke of exactly who had betrayed the Potter family.

Tanya had wept when the Potters died, and Flora had never seen her sister cry before. She herself had never known them; had only ever vaguely heard their names from her siblings. Potter had been a name that cropped up in discussions of school Quidditch matches. He had been in Phil's year, but in Tanya's house. Tanya had only really got to know them after they left school and joined that Order. She had gone to their wedding, and had mentioned it, last July, when they had had a baby. But Flora hadn't known that Tanya was really very close to them until they had been killed, and suddenly the name of Potter was famous in the Wizarding World.

Tanya had not wept when Sirius Black had been arrested, at least not in front of Flora. She had been white faced and blank with shock.

"We can't believe it," she had whispered to Flora, "None of us. Not him... They were best friends, you know? Back at school. I remember. You never saw them apart, those kids. You would never have believed it back then. But now... things are different. It's always the last people you expect. I mean, Merlin, our own _brother's_ one of them. But Black betrayed his best friend. He betrayed his own godson. That kind of bastard deserves to rot in hell."

And it had been the cold, calm tone in which she had said this that had made Flora's back prickle.

But he was in Azkaban. Tanya had said he deserved to rot in hell, and that's where he was. It had been in all the papers, and nobody escaped from Azkaban... did they? Had Flora somehow missed something; something that real witches and wizards knew and understood, but that she did not because she was not really part of it all?

He was in Azkaban. The bastard who had sentenced his best friend to death and orphaned his own godson was in Azkaban, which meant that he could not be lying in front of her on the lawn, in the shape of a black dog, with a little boy sobbing over him. Somewhere along the way, she had made a mistake in her assumptions, she tried to tell herself calmly.

But her instinct was telling her that she had made no mistake, and Flora trusted her instinct.

"What did you just call him?" she demanded.

The dog, whoever he was seemed to have lost consciousness, which was a relief at least.

The boy looked up at her through his tears, and there was sudden hope in his face.

"Sirius," he gulped, "His name's Sirius and he's my friend and they hurt him. Mummy said you were an animal doctor. Can you make him better?"

Flora crouched beside him and felt for the dog's pulse. It was still there, and fairly strong. He wasn't killed.

"Why do you call him Sirius?" she asked, as gently as she could given the battle that was still taking place around them.

"'Cause that's his name," the little boy was beginning to cry again, "He told me it was..." he broke off suddenly, horrified, "Only I weren't s'posed to tell anyone he was sometimes a man! You musn't tell anyone, okay!"

Flora was spared from making a promise she surely couldn't keep by the appearance of a dark figure in front of her.

He gave a harsh laugh.

"Well well, if isn't the squib. Thought your Ministry friends could save you, did you, squib? Thought you were safe with the Dark Lord gone? Well, let me tell you, you kind will never be safe as long as the Dark Lord has loyal followers. Not that it'll matter to _you_, because you're going to be dead."

As if from far away, Flora saw a wand being pointed at her and knew, through the rushing sound in her ears, that this was the end; that the words were going to be uttered, and that she was going to die, a victim of the Dark Lord and his minions, just like the Potters... And she realised that the Ashbys' lawn was littered with bodies, and that they were mostly the bodies of Ministry witches and wizards... and she thought with a dim horror that those people had died because of her.

The Death Eaters had come out to kill one squib tonight, but a lot of others had ended up dead too. She wondered what would happen to Mrs Ashby and her little boy. Probably they would die too, and Sirius Black would be back with his friends again... and a small part of her brain thought that it was very odd that he should have been fighting _against_ the Death Eaters just now... But it didn't matter, because she was going to die anyway...

And a tall thin figure exploded from the bushes nearby, and a spell hit the Death Eater in the chest. The figure did a sort of pirouette to avoid the spell that was fired at him, and Flora's brain came to the slow realisation that the person who had saved her, and was now surely going to be killed, was none other than her little brother Ben.

She opened her mouth to scream his name, but no sound came out. If ever in her life Flora Morrison had wished for a wand and the ability to use it, she wished it then. She could face her own death, but she could not face the death of her littlest brother...

But at that very moment, a sudden roaring filled her ears, and a glow lit up the garden.

Wildly, she looked around for the person responsible for this last piece of magic, but everyone she could see looked as terrified as she was.

A strong wind caught her off her feet and she landed on the ground, one arm over her face, waiting for the next blow to fall.

* * *

Benvolio Morrison was worried. More than worried. He was close to panic, and Ben did not panic often.

He had known for a long time that Hector was in touch with Cassius. He himself had no real desire to be in touch with his oldest brother. Cassius had never been particularly nice to him, and he had never really seen why Hector admired Cass the way he did. Ben was, on the other hand, fond of Hector, and had once looked up to the brother next in age to him in much the same fashion that Hector did Cassius. It had been a bitter realisation to him, therefore, that Hector could not see the evil of what Cassius was getting himself into.

He did not really know why he had followed Hector that night. He told himself that he wanted to protect Hector; protect him from Cass and from himself. But really, it was mainly curiousity. He wanted to know what it was that Cassius had to say to Hector that was so important. And so he had overheard a conversation that had hurt him more than anything ever had before.

Flora was the rock in Ben's life. The point of serenity in their warring family. The second mother who had been there when his real mother was too busy with her job to attend to a small boy at the tail end of the family. He would never have admitted it, but he adored Flora.

And Cassius was talking of his friends plotting to kill her, and doing nothing about it. Ben did not count telling Hector as 'doing something about it.' If Cassius had wanted, he could have warned Flora himself. Could have told their parents. But their father had said many angry things to Cassius the last time they had met, and Cassius' pride was greater than his love for Flora. If he loved her at all, Ben thought angrily. He talked as though he hated her. Their own _sister_.

Hector was even worse. Hector had done nothing at all. At least Cassius had tried to give some sort of warning. But Hector had said nothing to Flora. Had not warned her. Ben knew perfectly well why. Hector was scared. The last remnants of his admiration for his brother fell away in the days after he had overhead that conversation. Hector was too frightened for his own skin to tell Flora was Cassius had said.

At first, Ben gave him the benefitf the doubt. He must have told her after all. If he hadn't, he would surely do it soon. He would not leave his own sister to be killed by Death Eaters. Would he?

It was some time before Ben finally gave up hoping and came to the bitter realisation that Hector too cared more for himself than for their sister's life.

It generally took Ben a long time to make decisions. He didn't like making them; he didn't like having to act. He preferred to leave responsibility to other people. This time, it took him too long. Having decided to tell Flora himself that she was in danger, he went to her work, but she had already left. He went to her home, but she was not there.

At that point, he began to panic in earnest. Could she have been kidnapped? No, he told himself, trying to be the rational Ravenclaw he knew himself to be. There were plenty of places she could have gone. She had friends. Muggle friends. She had probably gone somewhere with them. But perhaps Ben had something of his sister's intuition, and something told him that all was not quite well.

Now that he had decided that he must act, he felt the urgency of the situation. In a panic, he tried to contact his parents, but his mother was neither at home nor at work, and his father had gone somewhere on Gringotts business and when Ben flooed the office, nobody could say when he would be back. Then he thought of Tanya, remembering what Cassius had said about Tanya's Order protecting squibs, but nobody ever knew where Tanya was, and Ben had no idea of how to contact her.

Thinking was what Ben was good at, so at that point, he sat down and thought.

And into his head came a memory of a conversation he had heard between Flora and their mother, some days ago. About a dog they had been treating at the surgery, whose blood had proved to be that of a human. And hehad overheard, too, the subsequent phone call Flora had made, making an appointment... and suddenly Ben knew exactly where his sister was, and, feeling an unusual sense of foreboding, he began to run.

He had been stupid all along, he told himself afterwards. He had been stupid and lazy and cowardly not to have done something as soon as he had heard the conversation between Cassius and Hector, and he had been even more stupid to think that he could do something to help her by himself. He had behaved like a naive child, he thought angrily to himself (or like a Gryffindor, which was much the same thing), charging off to find her without telling anyone anything about it, believing somehow that one frightened fourteen-year-old could take on a group of Death Eaters.

It was easy to think that sort of thing afterwards, but at the time charged into the battle, he thought only that Flora was going to be killed, and that he had a wand, and his sister did not.

He would have been dead in moments if help had not arrived.

* * *

They had their wands ready, as they had been told, although as Rose pointed out, they would have been stupid if they had not.

Lily felt her heart beating rather loudly as they prepared once more to travel through time, using a slightly precariously mended Time Turner. Rose was extremely sceptical of the Muggle glue working, but it seemed to be holding all right. Louis was fascinated by the stuff, despite the increasing pain in his ankle (they had had no chance, in the end, to visit the hospital wing, Rose having deemed it too risky to go wondering around when they did not absolutey have to), and Lily thought with amusement that Aunt Fleur might get tired of finding her things glued down before Louis got tired of experimenting.

But all thoughts disappeared rapidly, except what they would find at the other end. Have your wands ready, Sirius had told them, and he must have had a reason for that. What exactly would they need their wands for?

It did not take them long to work it out. They seemed to have arrived in the middle of a battle; or rather, at the end of one. Lily felt a little sick as she realised that the strange shapes littering the garden were bodies. But she didn't have much time to think about it, because no sooner had they arrived than they were under attack, and they found themselves fighting real Death Eaters for the first time in their lives.

Rose was trained for exactly this sort of situation, but neither Louis nor Lily had any real idea of what they were doing. Lily had managed to skip the duelling lessons at school, because she didn't really like that sort of thing, and Defence Against the Dark Arts was one of her worst subjects; she got flustered in a crisis, which wasn't the best disposition for the subject.

But now that she was faced with a real crisis, she found herself remarkably cool headed, and was quite pleased with the shield charm she managed to throw up, not to mention the Disarming Spell she used on the nearest enemy.

"Lily, what are you doing?" her cousin shrieked at her, whirling past, her wand a blur as she cast spell after spell, "Don't just defend yourself! _Stun_ them!"

Lily gritted her teeth and sent a stunning spell, and watched a Death Eater fall, but she knew that the spell had been a weak one, and that it wouldn't last long.

She vaguely realised, as she fought for her life, that there was a woman, with a small child clutched to her, cowering by the fence, and another young woman with them. But there was no time to think about them now. She concentrated on what she was doing, and carried on fighting.

There was also a kid, who looked no more than fifteen, and who was insisting on joining the fightig, she saw with alarm. Who he was, and where he had come from, she had no idea, but he had less idea of how to fight than she did.

She saw Louis go down; not because he had been hit by a spell, but because his ankle gave out, and she faltered for a moment as the Death Eater he had been battling prepared to take advantage of the moment. But then the man gave a howl of pain and fell, clutching his leg. Lily stared for a moment, and then, despite the seriousness of the situation, laughed out loud.

Cuthbert had joined the fight, and his teeth were strong for his size.

Louis was up again before the Death Eater had time to recover, and had stunned the other man, continuing to fight. Lily returned to her own battle, finally sending a stunner on target and felling her opponent.

As she did so, though, she saw, from the corner of her eye, the boy go down.

Glancing over her shoulder, she realised that he had been hit with a leg locker. There could be no reason for a move like that other than that the Death Eater wanted to play with her victim. With a flash of sudden fury, Lily spun round and sent her strongest spell yet straight at the woman's back. She crumpled, and Lily swiftly sent the antijinx at the boy and moved to help him up. The battle had moved away from them slightly, and there was a lull.

"Okay?" she asked him. He nodded, his eyes grim and sweat on his forehead.

"Thanks. I owe you one."

She smiled slightly.

"What are you doing here anyway? Who are you? You can't be of age..."

"My name's Ben Morrison. They attacked my sister..."

She was staring at him.

"Ben Morrison? As in Benvolio Morrison?"

It was his turn to stare.

"Um... yeah..."

"Listen... Ben... can you tell me what the date is right now?"

He looked even more startled.

"Er... it's December the 18th, 1981."

"Thank Merlin!" said Lily fervently, "We're right!" she eyed him thoughtfully, a sudden memory coming into her head, and the answer to a mystery occurring to her, "Hey, Ben. You know you said you owe me one? Well... I suppose you really do, right?"

He looked cautious.

"Yeah, I suppose so. What do you want me to do?"

She grinned.

"Nothing."

"Nothing?"

"No, not right now. But... just remember you owe me one, Ben Morrison. Because you and me are going to meet again. Take a good look at me, and you might just recognise me. My name's Lily, and I come from a different time; you might have guessed that from the way we arrived. But there's going to be a time, in your future, when you have the chance to make a decision that's going to mean a lot to me and my family. That's when I'm pulling in the debt. I'm asking you to remember me then, and remember that I saved your life, and make the right decision. The right decision for me _and my family_. That's important.

"But I don't really need to tell you to remember me. I know you will, because you did," she grinned at his confused face, "See you around, Ben."

Rose would probably have insisted that he keep out of the battle; that this was no place for kids. But Lily was fairly sure that such a suggestion would have been met with indignation, and after all, her own parents had both come into contact with Death Eaters before they turned fifteen. The boy had every right to defend his sister, and Lily happened to know that he would survive anyway.


	23. Going Home

**A/N: Ok, so first of all I'm sorry to all the people I confused with the final bit of the last chapter. I meant to put an author's note about it, but I forgot. **

**Basically, you won't find any reference to Lily meeting Benvolio Morrison before in this story, because it happened before the story started. It's a reference to one of my other stories, House of Cards, which is set in the same universe, but when Lily and co are still at Hogwarts. I stopped that story because I'd lost my way with it, and because this one was a lot more popular, but I plan to get back to it when this is finished, although with some chapters rewritten. Feel free to read it (and review!) but please bear in mind that I will be doing heavy revision of it in the near future. **

**Also, bear in mind that the actual event Lily refers to when she's talking to Ben hasn't even happened yet in House of Cards - it comes later in the story. So you MAY find Ben, if you read it carefully, but you won't find out what he did to fulfill the debt... You will find out a little more if you wait for the epilogue of Choices though!**

**Anyway, explanation over and I hope it makes more sense now. **

**Hope you enjoy this chapter. A few of you were impatient to know what would happen when Lily and Sirius were reunited - well, now you start to find out! Please review!**

* * *

"Are you okay, Doctor Lady?" Flora heard a small, worried voice by her ear, and turned to find the little boy close beside her, "They almost zapped you," he went on, his voice trembling slightly, "But they didn't, did they?"

From somewhere, she summoned up a reassuring smile.

"No, they didn't. I'm fine. Come on, let's go over there with your Mummy. It'll be safer over there." She had to raise her voice to be heard over the noise now; in the darkness, all was confusion. She was no longer sure who was fighting on which side; the newcomers had blended with the rest, and all she could make out were dark shadows flickering about, lit by the flashes of light that came from their wands. But somehow she had to stay calm for the little boy and his mother, who of course had no idea what was going on. Mrs Ashby appeared to be in shock, and was simply staring, her face white and her eyes wide.

"We have to get Sirius," the little boy said, "They zapped him..." And Flora was reminded of what the last few seconds had driven from her mind; that there was apparently an animagus called Sirius, who had the same eyes as the murderer Sirius Black, lying unconscious in front of her.

Only he was no longer unconcsious. The dog was stirring, and Flora tensed, wishing once more for the safety of a wand. But he could not have a wand himself, could he...?

The black dog raised its head and looked at them, and it took a moment for its eyes to come into focus. There was no doubt about it, even if Joe had not just confirmed it. Those were the eyes of a human, not a dog. It could not be him; it made no sense... But in many ways, it was the only thing that _did_ make sense.

"Sirius?" Joe was saying eagerly, "Sirius, are you okay?"

The dog simply lay there for a moment, a dazed expression on its face as it regained full consciousness, and Flora saw the little boy's panic begin to return.

"Sirius? Please talk to me! And oh, _please_ be a man again, just this once!" Joe was crying again now. Flora tried to take his hand to pull him away from the dog and towards his mother, but he shook her off and clung to the dog's long fur, desperate for some reassurance that he could not get, either from the strange woman he did not know, or from the mother who was terrified herself.

And there, before Flora's horrified eyes, the dog began to transform into a man. And there was no doubt about who he was, although he was younger and better looking than the pictures in the papers had made him out to be.

"Sirius Black!" she gasped, seizing the child's arm with more force, and backing hurriedly away.

Fear flickered into his eyes too, as he struggled into a sitting position.

"You know me?" he demanded, his voice rough with the past few days of disuse.

"Of course I know you! Everyone knows you! You're a traitor and a murderer, and you're supposed to be in Azkaban!"

The fear had turned to panic now.

"I thought you were a Muggle!" he said confusedly, and looked, to her surprise, at the little boy beside her, "Joe..."

The boy was looking from one of them to the other in a confused way, but when Sirius said his name, his eyes fixed on the young man.

"Oh, Sirius, they zapped you! Did they hurt you?"

"Joe," said Flora in a low voice, "This man is very dangerous. You need to go to your Mummy, right now, okay?"

Joe stared at her in puzzlement.

"No he isn't," he corrected her, "It's Sirius. He's my friend."

"You should believe him," the young man said, his voice almost amused, "I'm not very dangerous right now, if I ever was. I don't have a wand, and I think I might have a few broken ribs. And I don't actually expect you to believe me, but I'm not a traitor, and I didn't kill anyone either. I happen to be innocent."

She looked at him, and her practiced eye realised that he was speaking the truth about the first part anyway; he was injured and more or less helpless, unless he had a wand hidden somewhere. But as for the second part of his claim...

Flora's instinct had never let her down, and it was telling her that this man - boy, more like, because he was a good seven or eight years her junior - was telling the truth. But that could not be right. _Everyone_ knew he was guilty, even a squib like her. He had fooled even the people closest to him for years; he was simply a very convincing liar, that was all.

But could even the best actor have summoned the expression that had appeared in his eyes when Joe had refused to believe that he was dangerous? Try as she might, Flora could not imagine the young man in front of her as the sort of person to betray his best friend and murder a dozen people. Her instinct was telling her that he was as innocent as he said he was. And, after all, he had fought against the Death Eaters...

"Doctor Lady," Joe interrupted her thoughts, "You can make him better, can't you?"

She looked at him, feeling a surreal resignation. There was still fighting going on around her, between at least two groups of people, and Ben was somewhere, and they were probably all going to die anyway. Did it make much difference if her last act was to tend the wounds of a convicted murderer?

So she dropped to her knees beside him on the frozen ground.

"Well, you might have been better off staying as a dog," she told him, "I'm a vet nurse, not a doctor. Where are you hurt?"

"I'm not," he insisted, and then winced as she placed a hand on his ribcage.

"Broken ribs," she confirmed, "Or cracked, at least. There's not much I can do for you, but they shouldn't kill you, so long as you don't get any bone splinters in your lungs."

"Oh, great. Really reassuring," he said sarcastically, then grinned wryly as she glanced at his face, "Don't worry. I've had a lot worse."

"I expect you have," she said sourly, "Just keep still, and you'll be okay."

"Might be easier said than done," he commented, looking around him, "What's going on exactly?"

"Exactly? I couldn't tell you. We were attacked by Death Eaters, and then joined by the Ministry..." she noticed that his eyes registered more alarm at the word Ministry than at her mention of Death Eaters, "And then... something happened... and some more people arrived I think, but I'm not sure how..."

He was not really listening any more, but watching the battle alertly, apparently entirely mentally recovered from losing consciousness.

"You wouldn't happen to have your wand on you, would you?" he demanded.

She flushed a little.

"I'm a squib, actually," she had always been taught by her parents that there was no shame in being a squib, but she couldn't help a note of defiance creeping into her voice as she spoke, "I don't have a wand."

"Oh well," he said lightly, "That's you and me both, then. For some reason, the bastards seemed to think I wouldn't need one in Azkaban."

She stared at him, wondering how he could speak so casually of his arrest, and the crime he had committed - or not, as the case may be - especially considering the situation they were currently in. And she still couldn't imagine how he had managed to escape from the prison. She had, in fact, opened her mouth to ask him this, when a whirlwind hit them.

For a moment, she blinked, not sure what had happened, and then she realised that the whirlwind was in fact a girl; an extremely pretty girl, with silky red hair, currently escaping from the ponytail it was in, and dressed in a small top and skirt that were blatantly unsuitable for the December night.

But she seemed to know Black; at any rate, she had flung herself at him and thrown her arms around him, and then broken away looking embarassed, and stuttered out an apology. For a moment, the two of them stared at each other in something like amazement. Joe was gazing unashamedly at them, but Flora felt uncomfortable, as though she were intruding on a private moment.

Then Black grinned.

"About time you turned up. D'you know how long I've been waiting for you? I was beginning to think you were going to leave me stuck here, being a pet dog forever."

Flora blinked; whatever she had expected him to say, it wasn't that. It seemed that that wasn't quite what the girl had expected him to say either; she looked startled for a moment, and then began to laugh shakily.

"Merlin, Sirius. How did you manage to get yourself into the middle of _this_? It's like you go looking for trouble..."

"You can talk!" he retorted, "This is the girl who managed to send herself fifty years back in time by mistake!"

"What's going on anyway?" she asked, choosing to ignore his words, "Is it Death Eaters?"

"And the Ministry," Black grinned, his spirits now entirely restored, it seemed, by the arrival of his friend. Flora tightened her grip on Joe's shoulder, realising that although Black himself had been of little risk, given his broken ribs and lack of a wand, his friend was able bodied and presumably fully armed. And she had no idea who the girl was, or which side she was on; only that she seemed to be good friends with the man.

Flora tried to move back without being noticed, but she had reckoned without Joe.

"Sirius?" the little boy piped up questioningly, "Who's she?"

Black started, almost as if he had forgotten that Flora, Joe and Mrs Ashby were there.

"Ah... right... this is my friend Lily, Joe."

Joe's face fell.

"Oh... are you going to go away with her?"

Flora's head was spinning slightly. Lily... wasn't that the name of the Potter girl, whom Black had betrayed? She was sure that Tanya had called her Lily... Flora had never seen the girl and had no idea what she looked like, but... but she was dead, anyway. Either Black was as mad as some people said he was, or the name was a coincidence.

Or else... was there a third option? What had Black said about the girl travelling back in time? Not that that made any sense; surely it was not possible, even for wizards, to travel so far back...

She missed Black's reply to the little boy, but she was brought back to earth with a jerk when the girl addressed her directly.

"Sorry," the girl said, "I don't think I know who you are..."

"Flora," Flora said automatically, "Flora Morrison..."

"Oh!" a light came on in the girl' eyes, "Are you Benvolio Morrison's sister? He said his sister was here. So you're a witch? And is this your little boy?"

"I'm a squib, actually," said Flora stiffly, disliking having to explain for the second time in a few minutes, "But yes, Ben's my brother. And no, this isn't my little boy..."

"He's mine," Mrs Ashby spoke suddenly, looking around, "And I'd like to know what on _earth_ is going on, please. This is my garden..."

Her words were brave but her voice still shook. The girl called Lily looked sympathetic, and put her arm around the older woman.

"I wouldn't mind knowing that myself." Over the woman's head, she met Flora's eyes and mouthed "_Muggles_?"

Flora gave the smallest nod, but at that moment, they were interrupted.

"Oh, here you are," a new voice said, sarcasm tinging it, "Pulling your weight, I see, Lil. Nice of you to help, while the rest of us battled Death Eaters; hope you had a nice chat though. Sirius, is that you? What are you doing? And who are all these people?"

"Nice to see you too, Rose," the man on the ground grinned up at another red-haired girl. Other than the hair colour, she bore little resemblance to the first, though. She was taller and stockier, and not nearly as pretty, although still attractive in her own way. She was running a critical eye over Black.

"Don't say you're hurt too?" she groaned.

"What's happening?" the girl called Lily demanded.

"We won," said the other girl, shortly, "I don't think they expected to be attacked by a bunch of strangers who appeared out of nowhere. Once they realised they were outnumbered, they all started to apparate, except the odd one who was caught. That's not much comfort though, because any minute now, those Ministry idiots are going to realise that they've got more than Death Eaters on their hands," she glanced at Black, "Sirius, I'm not sure sitting in full view on a lawn full of Ministry law enforcers is the cleverest idea, you know."

"Then let's get out of here!" said Lily, urgently.

Rose raised her eyebrows.

"And leave Louis here? Not to mention that bloody dog of yours."

"Where are they?" Lily looked around helplessly.

"Last time I saw Louis, he was over there," Rose gestured towards the house, "I hope his ankle hasn't given out on him. I haven't a clue where Cuthbert is. We need to go and find them, but we don't have time; we're going to be spotted any minute..."

Flora made a snap decision. She had no reason on earth to trust these people; indeed, she had many reasons not to. But her instinct was telling her that they were good people, and she trusted her own instinct far more than she trusted the Ministry law keepers who had sentenced Sirius Black to a life in Azkaban. And the two red-haired girls, one of whom had the name of a dead woman, and who might or might not be a time traveller... Well, Flora had a good feeling from them... And the fact remained that they had fought against the Death Eaters, and if they had not arrived, she and Ben might both be dead by now.

"Go," she said resignedly, "Go and find your friend and get out of here, wherever it is you're going. I don't know if I'm doing the right thing or not... but I'll distract them."

They stared at her, then the one called Rose, who seemed to be more or less in charge, glanced at Black.

"Okay. I don't know who you are, but we won't refuse a good offer. What's wrong with you, Sirius? Are you badly hurt?"

He shook his head.

"Broken ribs, that's all, according to the doctor here."

"I'm not a doctor, I'm a vet nurse," Flora snapped.

Rose grinned at her.

"Well, I'm not a doctor either, but I am an Auror, and we get some training in healing. Lily, go and find Louis and get him here somehow. I'll take a look at Sirius. I'm not sure time travel's going to be too good for broken ribs, so I'll do what I can."

Lily nodded tensely, and disappeared into the shadows, moving, Flora noticed, almost silently in the darkness. Rose had wasted no time, and was already kneeling beside Sirius, yanking at his shirt.

"All right, girl," he said with a grin, "I know I'm attractive, but there's no need to rip my clothes off..."

"Not the time or the place, Sirius," she snapped, "And don't flatter yourself. I like them with smaller heads and bigger brains. Try again when Lily gets back."

She jabbed a wand into his ribs, as if to emphasise her point.

"Broken ribs," she confirmed, to Flora's slight irritation, "I'm not very good at knitting bones, but I can try..."

"No you can't," he said firmly, apparently not offended in the least by her previous words, "I'll wait for a proper healer, thanks."

Rose shrugged.

"Suit yourself. And don't blame me if you get a bone splinter in your lungs when we travel."

"Why don't we strap them up?" Flora suggested, "That'll limit the damage anyway." She held out the case she had brought with her, containing her vet's supplies.

"Oh, great," Rose smiled at her, "Thanks. Who did you say you were?"

"Flora Morrison," Flora said with a sigh, "I'm a squib. And I haven't got a clue what I'm doing here, helping a man everyone knows is a murderer..."

Rose looked seriously at her.

"He isn't, you know. He's innocent."

"So he tells me," Flora said grimly.

"It's true," Rose insisted, then hesitated, "Lily and I... we come from the future. It's too complicated to explain everything... but we come from nearly fifty years into your future. We're time travellers. And in our time, everyone knows it was a mistake. He didn't do it."

"Time travellers. Right," Flora said with quiet resignation, feeling that she really must be in some sort of weird dream.

Rose shrugged.

"Believe it or not; it's up to you. But you seem to be helping us anyway..."

Flora closed her eyes.

"I don't know what to believe any more. Just take the bandages and get out of here, and then I don't have to think about you again."

She handed the case to Rose, and, before she could think better of it, helped Mrs Ashby to her feet, took Joe by the hand, and walked out onto the path.

"Hello? Mr Ferguson?" she called, "It's Flora Morrison; Hamish's daughter. I've got some Muggles here..."

* * *

The Ministry men were fully occupied by arresting the Death Eaters they had captured, performing memoy charms on the traumatised Muggle woman and her little boy, and making sure that the two Morrisons (Benvolio appeared shortly after his sister) were not hurt (which they weren't). Then, of course, Flora had a long and slightl rambling story to tell of the last few days, and how she had become sure that she was being followed (she conveniently forgot to mention Hector's name). Ben looked at his sister in surprise, for she was not usually so long-winded or confused. But the Ministry men loved it, and came into their own as the gallant heroes taking care of the poor terrified squib.

None of them even noticed the golden glow beginning in one corner of the garden, and when the sudden wind hit them, and they looked round to find out what caused it, it was too late.

The strangers, and the big black dog, had gone.

* * *

In the confusion of the last few moments int the dark garden, not even Lily noticed what they had missed.

As they tumbled back into the safety of their own time, however, she realised it. Picking herself up, she looked around in horror.

"We've gone and left Cuthbert behind!"

It was true. They looked at each other, dismayed. Lily looked at the Time Turner in her hands.

"We have to go back..."

"No, we don't," said Rose, very firmly, "We can't. Don't be stupid, Lil. What if we were caught? Or the Time Turner broke again and we were stuck there? We're back safe; we can't risk going back again. It's not worth it."

"What d'you mean, it's not worth it?" Lily demanded, "It's _Cuthbert_!" She was close to tears.

Rose snatched the Time Turner from her.

"No. No more stupid decisions. Once is enough," she looked up at the house, "Now, it looks like we're back in the right time after all that. This is definitely Aunt Ginny's garden. And it doesn't look as if too much time's gone by; still April, I'd say," she looked at the two wounded members of the party, "So, can you two walk as far as the house, or do we need to levitate you?"

"I can walk," said Louis, firmly, "Nobody's levitating me, thanks."

"So can I," Sirius proved it by getting to his feet, very carefully, and taking a few slow steps.

"Okay," said Rose, doutfully, "Louis, lean on my shoulder."

He put his weight on her, and they started up the path.

Lily and Sirius looked at ach other.

"Are you sure you can manage?" said Lily, in a small voice.

He nodded.

"It's not far. I'll be fine."

They followed the other two. Sirius looked at Lily out of the corner of his eye. She was biting her lip and staring at the ground as she walked.

"Hey..." he said, gently, "The Ashbys'll look after him, you know."

She looked up, startled.

"What?"

"Cuthbert. The Ashbys'll look after him."

"Who are the Ashbys?"

"Oh... that family who lived in this house in 1981. The woman and the little boy. Joe."

There was a strange note in his voice, and she looked at him curiously.

"What makes you say that? What _happened_ after you went back?"

He grinned ruefully.

"Well... I got taken in as a pet, and examined by a what-d'you-call-it, an animal doctor, and given a lot of dog food. And I played a lot of Fetch, and Tag, and I got taken to see a Christmas play..."

"_What_?" Lily giggled slightly.

"They like dogs," he said, more seriously, "The little boy, Joe... he's a good kid..." that odd note was back in his voice, and she thought with surprise that he might actually have got fond of the boy, "He loves dogs, and he's lonely. He needs a friend. And I think they'd have kept me, if I'd been a real dog. You took his new best friend away, you know; he'll have been heartbroken when he found I'd gone. If he can keep Cuthbert, that's a good thing, I reckon."

She smiled sadly.

"Well, I'll miss him. But I suppose he'll like the Ashbys..."

"He'll love Joe," Sirius assured her, "And Joe'll love him."

Lily took a deep breath.

"Okay. So he can stay with Joe. I suppose I don't mind quite so much then," she gave him a small smile, "Thanks, Sirius."


	24. Repercussions and Realisations

**A/N: I'm sorry folks. It's a complete filler chapter, but the chapter I was going to post was getting too long, so I had to cut it off. Hopefully the next one won't be too long in coming and will be a bit more interesting. Sometimes you just have to get one of these out of the way, but I'm now home from my Italian adventure, and at the moment have nothing to do but write, so hopefully the updates will come thick and fast.**

**Some of you have requested a return to some Sirius/Lily action, so I hope you like some of the bits in this chapter.**

**Anyway, thank you so much to arwenjanelilylyra, Aunt Mo, ermireallydontcare, RatedRCouture and Lily Anne Rose for the lovely reviews, it's great to know that my faithful readers are still there, and that new ones are still finding this story! What with travelling and eveything, I haven't been as good at replying to reviews as usual - but I promise to reply to every signed review for this chapter, good or bad.**

They came in through the front door together. There were a lot of voices coming from the living room. Lily and Rose looked at each other. It sounded like quite a lot of the family was there. Their adventure must have been discovered. So much for getting there, getting Sirius and getting out again before anyone knew they'd been gone. But how much time had gone by? How accurate had they been with the Time Turner? It seemed to be more than slightly erratic...

They hesitated in the hall for a moment, and in the time it took them, the door to the living room opened, and Molly emerged, looking as though she hadn't slept for about a week. For a second, she simply stood there, staring at them, then she gave a piercing shriek, and flung herself on them.

The next moment the hall was filled with people, all talking at once. Ginny was there, trying to pretend that she was not crying, and alternately hugging and shaking Lily. James, looking almost as rough as Molly, was eagerly demanding to know what had happened, and Lily noticed that his girlfriend was there too, hovering in the background, and looking as though she felt a little out of place.

Aunt Fleur was shrieking hysterically at Louis in French, while Uncle Bill tried to calm her down, and at the same time tell his son exactly what he thought of him. Uncle Ron was talking loudly over the din, trying to tell everyone to be quiet and give them space, but everyone was ignoring him, and Albus was trying to get close enough to look at Louis' ankle, which wasn't easy, because Aunt Fleur kept getting in the way. Grandma Weasley was shouting at everyone indiscriminately, while Grandad kept trying to introduce himself to Sirius, whom he had apparently known vaguely back in 1981. Lily was pretty sure that there were quite a lot of other people there too, but she could not see them through the press of people at the front

Eventually, she managed to meet Teddy Lupin's eyes over the heads of their various parents and siblings, and give him a desperate look. Teddy and Lily had never needed many words to understand each other, and he gave her a reassuring grin, hopped up onto a hall chair, stuck his fingers in his mouth, and gave a piercing whistle.

It was ear splitting in the enclosed space, and it had the desired effect. There was a startled silence, as everyone looked round. Teddy grinned down at them all.

"That's better," he jumped off the chair, "Now, I'm going to floo the Ministry and let Harry and Hermione know they can call off the search effort."

He strolled into into the dining room, but his interuption had calmed everybody down a little. Fleur was still clinging to Louis and weeping, but not as loudly, and Grandma Weasley had sat down on another chair to recover.

Ginny turned to Lily.

"What on _earth_ did you think you were doing?" she asked quietly.

"We went to find Sirius," said Lily defensively, "And we did. We brought him back." She gestured at Sirius. Ginny looked at him.

"Yes, well, we're very pleased he's back, obviously, but..."

"But of all the stupid, irresponsible things to have done!" Ron burst out, "What would have happened if you'd been stuck there? What if something had happened? How do you think we'd have got you back? Honestly, I thought you'd have had more sense, all of you! You're adults, not children any more, but you behave like babies!"

"Oh come on, Ron," said a new voice, and Lily noticed Uncle George for the first time, "Calm down. It's not as though you've never done stupid, irresponsible things in your life. All's well that end's well, that's my motto. They're all back, and in one piece..."

"More or less," Albus interupted, "What have you done to your foot, Lou?"

"And Sirius has broken ribs," Rose put in.

"And you've got a pretty nasty cut on your arm yourself," Albus went on, looking at her, "Actually, Lily seems to be the only one who's _really_ in one piece. What the hell have you all been doing?"

"Weelll," Rose grinned at her father and glanced at her Aunt Fleur, "We had a bit of a run in with some Death Eaters..."

_"What?"_ Ron exploded, "Which ones?"

"I don't know," his daughter said irritably, "They were attacking a squib and a couple of Muggles, so we didn't stop to ask them their names..."

"Macnair, Travers, Mulciber and Crabbe," Sirius said tonelessly, "And a couple of others I didn't recognise."

Ron looked wordlessly at his daughter. He had fought against the men Sirius mentioned himself, but they had been dead for years. He had certainly never expected his children to come up against them.

James was looking furious to have missed the adventure. Rose glanced at him from the corner of her eye, and grinned at the others.

"Of course, we won," she went on airily, "Or we wouldn't be here. They soon realised they were up against a bit too much, and most of them apparated as quick as they could. We caught a couple, and handed them over to the Ministry. It was a pretty tough fight, but we had the edge on them. It was the Muggles I felt sorry for..."

She watched with satisfaction as her cousin's mouth fell open during this spiel of half-truths. There was a stunned silence in the hallway.

"Well," said Ron eventually, "You're a bunch of bloody idiots, but you did pretty well, I'll give you that..."

"Yes," agreed Ginny dryly, "Especially considering that two of you were injured. I didn't realise your duelling skills had improved so much, Lily."

"Oh, well," said Lily vaguely, "Rose did most of it. She's much better than me..."

"Evidently," her mother assented, "Considering that she seems to have defeated half a dozen Death Eaters more or less single handedly."

Rose grinned cheekily at her aunt.

"Well, you know what they say. You can do anything if you try."

"What really happened?" James asked suspiciously.

"I told you..." Rose began, but got no further. Louis's ankle had been increasingly painful since the painkiller started to wear off in the passage up to Hogwarts. Since then, he had been through an apparition, two time jumps and a vigorous battle, and it had reached the point of unbearability. With a small groan, he sank down to the floor; at least he would have done, if Albus hadn't grabbed his arm and supported him to the chair instead.

"Merlin, Louis," he exclaimed, examining the ankle, "What did you do? Either you gave it a hell of a twist, or you've been running round on it and making it worse for ages. And don't try and tell me you did it in a battle a few minutes ago. Leaving the time travel out of it, some of this bruising's hours old."

"Did it when we first went back," Louis mumbled, slightly incoherently, "Fell over."

"You fell over. So much for battling for your lives," James commented sarcastically.

"We did!" Rose exclaimed indignantly.

"Please be quiet, you two," said Ginny wearily, "I'm sure we'll hear the whole story eventually. But for now, we've got two people hurt, and the rest of us have had no sleep all night, thanks to you lot, and the last thing we need is you two bickering like children."

"And I expect everyone could do with a cup of tea," Grandma Weasley suddenly recovered herself, going into her usual capable mode and bustling away. For a few minutes, things calmed down a little. Everybody was dying to hear the story, but Ginny insisted that they wait until after the tea had been served, and restrained her oldest son with some difficulty. Albus, in the meantime, was dealing expertly with Louis' damaged ankle and Sirius' broken ribs (Lily tried not to look that way while his shirt was off, feeling that it was somehow inapproriate under the circumstances).

Then Harry and Hermione arrived.

Hermione exploded into the hallway, hair flying out all around her face, eyes slightly wild, and most people shrank back a little at the expression in them, but the storm they expected didn't come. For a moment, she simply stood there, her eyes moving over the four time travellers and coming to rest on Rose.

"Well," she said, and her voice was icy, "What exactly have you got to say for yourselves?"

The silence that followed was ominous. Ginny broke it by clearing her throat.

"Now might be the time for that whole story I mentioned..."

* * *

So they told the story, although it wasn't quite the whole thing. It was also a little confused, because although Rose did most of the telling, the others kept putting in bits that she had missed out.

None of them mentioned, either, their visit to 1994. When Rose first ommitted it, Louis opened his mouth to correct her, caught Lily's eye, and closed it again. Lily herself knew exactly why Rose hadn't mentioned it. It was an unneccessary and uncomfortable part of the story, and personally, she couldn't have told it if she'd tried. The glimpse of their dead uncle, and the encounter with an older Sirius... it was too strange, and made things too complicated. So they said nothing, and it seemed better that way.

It was not the last time they told the story. The alarm had been raised at the Ministry, so they had to tell it all over again more than once before the authorities would actually believe them. Then, of course, the press got hold of it, and the story of Sirius Black's return, which had been beginning to die down, was revived all over again. By the time Monday arrived, they were heartily sick of the whole thing, and Lily had to return to work to the renewed stares and comments of her customers. James continued to be grumpy with them all for leaving him behind, while most of the rest of the family was furious with them for giving everybody such a fright.

"It'll blow over," Albus told a stressed Lily comfortingly, when he dropped into the shop on a trip to Diagon Alley.

"Well I hope it hurries up," she said tiredly, "I could do with some sunshine now, you know."

Albus looked at her with a little bit too much understanding in his eyes, and she wondered if she'd said too much; no, he couldn't possibly have guessed, just from that, what else was making her unhappy... but then why was he looking at her like that?

She was doing her very best not to think of Sirius like that.

"He's Dad's godfather," she told herself, over and over again, "He's the same age as my grandfather would be. It's just _wrong_."

The fact was, though, that he was _not_ the same age as her grandfather would be; he ought to be, but actually, he was twenty two. And it had not _felt _wrong.

But now, he gave no sign that it had been, for him, anything other than a single night of fun, so Lily did her best to dismiss those thoughts and to behave as though he meant no more to her than he did to any of the others. It would have been easy to be drawn to him like a magnet, and to have returned to her parents' house every night, but she had not done that for months, so she determined to be strong, and to wait for the following weekend. That, she said to herself, was not so unreasonable, even if she _had_ been home for the last two weekends in a row, which was highly unusual. But she told herself that it was only natural that she should go home more often to see him; that was simply the action of a friend, nothing more.

So she determindly put all thoughts of him out of her head, and said yes when Meri Hewitt asked her to come out for a drink on Tuesday night, and agreed to cook dinner with Roxy on Wednesday. By that time, it would be Thursday, and she would only have two days to wait anyway.

But when Calum Nelson asked her if she wanted to join him in a bar on Thursday, she said she already had plans.

She had been on the odd date with Calum before, and he was a perfectly nice young man who had been in Rose and Al's year at Hogwarts. She had always thought he was quite attractive and afterwards she couldn't think why she had been so silly as to refuse. It was the first time she had said no to an acceptable date since her school days, but she told herself it meant nothing; she was tired after everything that had happened at the weekend, that was all. It had nothing to do with Sirius Black (except in that what had happened at the weekend was because of him).

She began to wonder whether that was strictly true, though, when, on Tuesday night, the good-looking man in the bar started chatting her up, and she brushed him off with barely a glance, and continued to ignore him when he persisted. She watched Meri exchange startled looks with Claire Baynard, who was with them, and realised with dismay that what she was doing was not typical Lily behaviour. She was always perfectly happy to flirt in a bar, and often more; and the man was exactly the type she usually found most attractive. Meri and Claire had probably expected her to disappear off into a corner with him, and she was not really sure why she had not. She took a mouthful of her drink and watched a group of drunk Muggles trying to leave through the revolving door as she pondered the situation.

Meri prodded her in the ribs.

"What's the matter, Lil?"

"Hmm? Nothing," she had a feeling that she had not sounded very convincing.

Meri looked over at the man, who had rejoined his friends, looking very disgruntled at his failure to buy a drink for the pretty red-haired near the bar.

"Okay. So what was wrong with him? Since when do you refuse a drink from a good-looking guy?"

Lily shrugged.

"I just... didn't want to."

Meri looked mystified.

"Why not?"

Lily thought about it, but could come up with nothing better than, "I just didn't."

Meri looked quizzically at her.

"Why do I get the feeling there's something you're not telling us?"

"There's not," Lily insisted, "I just didn't feel like it tonight, that's all."

"Okay," Claire put in, "So either you're ill, or Lily Potter's been kidnapped and you're impersonating her, because the Lily I know _never_ refuses a good offer from a hot guy."

"No need to make me sound like a slut," Lily said grumpily.

"You're not a slut," said Claire soothingly, "You're just Lily. But seriously, I don't get it. He's _hot_! If you don't want him, can I have him?"

"Feel free," Lily scowled, and watched as Claire left them and sashayed over to the group of men. The other girl stopped beside them, one hand on her hip, and leaned seductively on the back of one of their chairs. Even from this distance, they heard her flirtatious laugh.

"Hey, she can talk," Lily commented to Meri, "I never do _that._"

"No, you don't need to," her best friend agreed, "They always come to you. But I've never seen you ignore a guy before you even give him a chance, Lil. I mean, I'm all for it; you flirt a hell of a lot too much. But are you sure nothing's wrong?"

For a moment, Lily hesitated. Merideth Hewitt had been her best friend since their first year at Hogwarts, and there was nobody she trusted more. But they were in a crowded bar, and anyway, to say it would have made it real. It was better not to acknowledge it, and then it would go away. So she shook her head.

"Nothing's wrong. I just didn't feel like it."

* * *

Sirius was bored. He didn't like to admit it, even to himself, because he was well aware of what the Potters had done for him (with a certain sense of irony and the usual pang of pain, he remembered another Potter family, who had once taken him in just as unquestioningly) but the fact remained that there was little of interest for him in Barnstaple.

He knew nobody, and he was fighting shy of wizarding company anyway. It wasn't that he minded the attention in the least, but he was uncomfortably aware of his lack of a wand. Not being able to do magic felt as though a crucial part of him was missing, and when he was around other witches and wizards, he felt like a squib. Part of him desparately wanted to say something to Harry and Ginny, because he was sure that if he did, they would see to it that he got a new wand, but so far pride had overruled his desire to do magic.

Harry and Ginny themselves always seemed to be out. Sirius remembered - a million years ago, it seemed - asking Lily what she did all day, while she was living with her parents, and she had struggled to find an answer. The housework had been all she could come up with, and he grinned slightly at the thought of the Potters' reactions if he tried to do that; the result could only be disasterous. But he wondered how Lily had born it so long. Of course, the difference had been that she had friends, and she had been able to apparate to see them. Sirius was stuck.

Of course, he had friends too, although he still felt a little uncomfortable with them. Albus appeared at one point, to check on Sirius' now healing ribs, but Sirius couldn't look at the other young man without being unbearably reminded of James.

The second James dropped in a few times, and there was no doubt that he and Sirius clicked well, but for some reason he never suggested that they leave the house. Of course, he had his own friends, and Sirius could not expect simply to add himself in to them. He must not, he told himself, hope that they would be the Marauders. Not that he would really want them to be, he thought miserably. Nobody could replace the Marauders.

And Lily... well, Lily did not appear at all, and he could not be surprised. She was the kind of person who would have a busy social life - just like he had been, once - and if she was not interested in him, he just wouldn't think about her. There were plenty of other girls in 2028, and any of them would be less complicated than Lily. He had never had any problem getting girls, or in getting over girls. He wasn't even sure why he _was_ still thinking about her; it wasn't normal for him at all. But then, nothing was normal now.

He was quite successful, though, in putting her out of his head during the week, and distracted himself by starting up a minor (and fairly unsatisfactory) flirtation with a pretty waitress in the coffee shop. Until he met the Ashbys, he had never spent much time in the Muggle world, because his friends had always been in the wizarding one, but now he almost preferred the anonymity. At least here, he didn't feel quite so handicapped, and the girl was really very attractive, and obviously smitten with the dashing stranger who had started coming into the shop.

It was irritating, therefore, after the success of these tactics, that when Lily appeared on the doorstep on Friday night, looking a little windswept and pink in the cheek, his heart should give quite such a heavy flip.

He was shocked and more than a little dismayed by it; had he really fallen for the girl? He couldn't remember reacting to a person like that since... well, he wasn't sure if he ever had. But it was impossible. For one thing, Sirius Black didn't fall hard for people. For another, it was _Lily Potter_. It was James' _granddaughter_. Surely that fact alone ought to be enough to turn him right off? It was only that seeing her standing there, with her hair all over her face and looking as though she'd been running reminded him of the way she'd looked when they'd arrived the Wheatsheaf Hotel that night back in 1980. That was all it was. And the fact that when she beamed at him and looked delighted to see him, his heart started racing, meant nothing at all. _Nothing at all_.

"Lily!" Ginny came out of her study with a quill in her hand, as she had been in the middle of composing a report on the latest Quidditch match, "Hello darling, nice to see you. Are you staying for dinner?"

"If that's okay?" Lily looked expectantly at her mother, knowing perfectly well what the answer would be.

"If you cook, it is," Ginny smiled at her daughter, "Your dad's working late again; there's been another Muggle attack; and I must get this article edited by tomorrow. Would you mind...?"

"Course not," Lily agreed breezily, dumping her handbag on the hall table, "Just let me change and have a shower." She smiled at them both and headed upstairs. Ginny looked at Sirius.

"Sorry, Sirius. You don't mind me leaving you to Lily tonight, do you?" Sirius, whose mind had unfortunately followed Lily upstairs and into the shower, gaped at the woman speaking to him, wondering if she had any idea of the additional images she had just provided for him. No, he decided, coming back to reality and conjuring a polite answer from somewhere, of course she didn't. Because she had no idea just how attracted to her daughter he was; he had not really known himself until a few moments ago. Now, though, as Ginny disappeared back into her study, he realised with creeping dismay that getting Lily off his mind might be harder than he had ever imagined.

* * *

**Yes, they're being thick about it. Sorry about that. :-) And sorry again about the filler nature of this chapter. Back to virtual brownies for reviewers.**


	25. A Little Cooking

**A/N: Sorry folks, It's another fairly short chapter in which nothing much happens... Basically, I have loads planned for the next chapter, but I want to have it all in one, and if I'd tried to put it in this one, it would have got ridiculously long. Hopefully you can forgive me though, after the previous few action-filled chapters. Call it time to catch your breath. But don't expect more crazy adventures - at least not TOO crazy - the pace needs to wind down a bit now.**

**Anyway, the usual thanks and brownie handouts to: arwenjanelilylyra, Lily Ann Rose, Katara97, CrystallineX and AuntMo.  
**

* * *

"Shit!" Lily jerked aside just in time to stop the bag of flour hitting her on the head as it fell from the cupboard above her, which she had just opened. Instead, it erupted all over the floor. Red-faced, she looked up at the young man grinning at her from his seat by the table.

"Don't even say anything," she warned him, pulling out her wand and beginning to clean up the mess.

"I wasn't going to," he protested, "I didn't even open my mouth."

"And don't laugh either," she told him grumpily.

"I'm not laughing. But that's the third thing you've dropped in about as many minutes. I would never call you clumsy or anything, but are you sure you should be using that knife?"

"I thought you weren't going to say anything!" her lips twitched despite themselves, "Anyway, it was your fault."

"_My _fault?" he looked indignant, "How was it _my _fault?"

"You're sitting there watching me, and I can't concentrate," she complained.

He raised his eyebrows, his grin growing.

"Oh, Lily. Am I making you nervous...?"

"Oh, shut up," she responded, wishing she hadn't said it. Comments like that were all very well, except when they happened to be true. His flirting was apparently back. She didn't know whether she was happy about it or not. On the one hand, it was good to have him back in what she knew was his 'normal' mode, but on the other, it made her distinctly hot under the collar when he grinned at her like that, and she was afraid it showed.

"Here," she held out a bowl of tomatoes in his direction, "Make yourself useful and chop these."

He looked dubiously at the contents of the bowl. Well, how hard could it be? Anyone could chop tomatoes, couldn't they? It would be just like chopping Potions ingredients back at school. Shame Potions had always been his worst subject...

He glanced at her from the corner of his eye, but she wasn't looking at him. She was leaning over a pan on the stove, red hair fastened loosely back from her face, exposing her neck. He looked away again quickly, and wished he hadn't made the flippant comment before. It took them back to light flirtation, and he wasn't sure how much of that he could take without going crazy. He had only done it to cover his real reaction to her words.

_"You're sitting there watching me, and I can't concentrate."_ Fucking hell, how was he _supposed _to take a comment like that?

"Sirius, I asked you to chop them, not mangle them," Lily herself interrupted his thoughts, sounding uncharacteristically like her cousin Rose. Cooking, it seemed, was one of the few activities that made her lose her vagueness and become quite sharp.

"Sorry," he said meekly, gazing at what could only be called tomato mush, "Does it really matter?"

She looked at it.

"Not really. Didn't you ever learn to chop vegetables?"

"No, the House Elf did it," he informed. She stared at him.

"You had a _House Elf_ in that flat?"

"Oh. No, not at the flat. I meant when I was a kid. After I got my own place... I s'pose I just didn't bother much about vegetables. And I generally cooked with magic anyway. Why don't you, by the way?"

She shrugged.

"I like cooking the Muggle way. And it's easier to get things wrong using magic, anyway. Didn't you find that?"

He grinned.

"Yes, mostly people refused to eat what I cooked."

She paused, suddenly noticing that they had both been using the past tense to talk of his efforts to cook by magic. And come to think of it, she hadn't seen him do any magic at all since he came to her time...

"Sirius, do you have a wand?" she asked abruptly.

He looked amused, but something told her that he wasn't really.

"No, for some reason they took it off me. Seemed to think I might try and murder a few people, or blast away a street of Muggles or something if they let me keep it."

She looked appalled.

"But... but you've been here for... well, nearly two weeks, not counting what happened at the weekend... You can go and get a new one, can't you? You can't do without a wand!"

He laughed harshly.

"Lily, have a think about it. In this time, I've been dead for however many years. I haven't got anything here. No wand, and no money to buy one. I haven't got a bloody thing that's actually mine; even these clothes are really your brother's."

She bit her lip.

"Yes, but... well, you know, half Dad's money came from you. Well, maybe not half, but a good bit of it anyway. You left him a bloody _house_, for Merlin's sake!"

"Stop it," he interrupted her, "D'you know how weird it is when you talk to me about things I haven't done yet, as if they were in the past?"

"They _were _in the past," she pointed out gently, and he groaned.

"Please don't. Anyway, it doesn't make any difference, does it? The money's your dad's, and the house has been sold. In 2028, Sirius Black owns nothing, not even a pair of shoes."

She said nothing for a moment, for it was clearly a touchy subject. Sirius was proud, and he didn't like living off other people's charity. However much she told him that half their money ought to be his, it would make no difference. The money was _not _his, and he would not take it.

"You could get a job," she suggested at last. He laughed again.

"Yeah, right. Who'd employ me?"

She looked surprised.

"Lots of people, I should think. You've got decent qualifications, haven't you? According to all the stories, you were one of the most talented wizards to come out of Hogwarts, and from what I've seen, it could well be true. You're a hell of a lot better than me, that's for sure."

He fiddled with the knife on the table.

"That was before," he muttered.

"What's that supposed to mean?" she demanded, confused, "I mean, I know you haven't got a wand right now, but we can fix that. Don't tell me you won't even take a bit of a loan..."

"I didn't mean that," he made an attempt to smile, without meeting her eyes, "I didn't mean anything. It doesn't matter. Forget it."

She snatched the knife out of his hands, almost slicing his finger off as she did so, but she ignored this, despite his yelp of protest.

"Sirius. What the hell's the matter? What d'you mean 'that was before'? Are you trying to tell me you've lost all your skill? Because I definitely don't believe _that_!"

She sat down in the chair opposite him, so that he could hardly avoid looking at her.

For perhaps the third time since she'd met him, his mask was down. The bravado was gone and he looked lost and a little frightened, as well as sheepish.

"No. Yes. I don't know, do I? I haven't done any magic for months. The last time I drew my wand was on Peter, and he beat me. _Peter Pettigrew_ beat me. Right now, I don't feel as if I could do any sort of spell, even the most simple. I don't know what it is, but it just doesn't feel like I've got it in me any more."

"Sirius, I don't think you _forget _how to be a wizard," she said skeptically.

"Don't you?" he met her eyes unhappily, "No, I suppose not. I just feel like... well, like that person, who could do most of the spells they teach at Hogwarts with his hands tied behind his back; the guy everyone expected to do something great, if only he could get his act together and stop messing around... I feel like that guy was someone else. Someone I'm not anymore. And I can't be him; things are different now. Sometimes, I can almost forget; almost feel back to normal again. But then I remember. There were always two of us, Lily. I mean, there were four, but... it was the two of us they used to say those things about. He was always there, at my back, and when we were together, we could do anything. _Anything_. Now he's gone, and I can't remember how to do any of it anymore."

"Sirius..." she reached out a hand and touched his gently, "First thing tomorrow, we're going to get you a wand, and you're going to see. You don't _forget_."

For a moment, they were silent, then Sirius smiled lop-sidedly.

"I really need to stop having some sort of break down every time I see you. I'm not really this emotional, I promise."

She smiled back, worriedly

"Well, of all the people you could pick to have break downs on, I'm probably the worst. I'm hopeless at giving advice and saying the right thing."

"You're not, you know," he told her, "The good thing about you is that you don't go over the top with the sympathy, the way some people do. Most people would either say stupid, meaningless things that were suppose to make me feel better, or else they'd try and pretend they understood. You never waste time doing that, you're just there. But you somehow end up making me feel better anyway..." he broke off suddenly, and she wondered whether he had been uncomfortably reminded of the first time she had witnessed him break down, and exactly how she had made him 'feel better.' She spoke quickly.

"Well, I never feel like I'm being much help. But you, know, you're allowed to be emotional for a bit, after... well, after everything. Although I do think you need to start doing magic again."

He needed to start having fun again, she thought to herself a bit later. It couldn't be good for him, staying here all the time, with nothing much to do except think about things. No wonder he was in a strange mood. She had a feeling that if he was under these conditions normally, he would be in a foul mood, but that he was doing his very best to be polite, which could only add to the strain. He certainly wasn't quite the same person she had first met, back in 1980, although she felt sure that that person was still there, underneath.

That evening last week had been the first and only time he had really been able to let go and have fun since he got here, and it had ended disasterously. He couldn't go on like this; she realised with a guilty feeling that they had been treating him a little like an invalid. She knew her mother had told James off over the drinking session last Friday, and not just because it had ended with them all back in the past. Sirius was in a vulnerable state, Ginny had told her oldest son; the last thing he needed was to be encouraged to drown his sorrows in a firewhisky bottle. Unfortunately, most of what James did for fun involved alcohol of some sort, so that, Lily knew, had resulted in her brother not inviting Sirius to join him and his friends at their social gatherings, which he otherwise would probably have done.

Lily herself had not tried to get him out of the house, either (although that was for altogether different reasons), and she knew that none of the others had either. Rose and Albus were too taken up with their respective careers to have much of a social life these days; Rose, like the rest of the Auror department, was busy until all hours with the latest Muggle attacks that had rocked the wizarding world (and she snatched the odd spare moments she had to see her boyfriend, which was quite understandable), and Al had exams coming up. Louis was an integral part of James' crowd, so if James was holding back, Louis would be too. Molly tended to spend most evenings either in the flat with Lily, or doing something with Roxy and their other friends, who were all girls, and while Lily was sure that Sirius would be only too happy to be invited to an all-girls gathering, she knew that Molly wouldn't think it was a good idea at all. And none of the others had even met Sirius, so they could not be expected to befriend him.

They needed to do something about it fast, though, before he was into permanent depression, she decided. If he was going to stay here, they had to help him build a life here; a life that was at least approaching normal.

She mulled over it over dinner, and was rather silent, but her family were used to Lily being in her own world half the time, and took no notice.

After dinner, she headed upstairs, closed her bedroom door firmly behind her, grabbed a jar of floo powder from the top of her chest of drawers, and, kneeling down on the floor, threw a handful into her empty fireplace. She disliked this method of communication, because it meant lying on the floor in a very undignified way, with your head in the fireplace, but needs must...

She put her head into the fire, and saw the room she had requested to visit come into focus in front of her. She glanced round, and spotted the person she wanted to talk to.

"Hello!" she called, to attract attention to herself.

Her brother jumped, and looked round, scowling.

"Fucking hell, Lily. D'you mind not sticking your head into my house without an invitation?"

"Come off it," she rolled her eyes, "You're sitting on the sofa reading a Quidditch magazine. Hardly the most private thing... although why _are_ you sitting on the sofa reading a Quidditch magazine? It's Friday night!"

"I've got a match tomorrow," he informed her, "So it's no alcohol and an early night. Which I thought you'd know; let your Quidditch following lapse a bit, haven't you?"

"A bit," she admitted, "I seem to have had lots of other things to think about. Who are you playing? It's not a major match, is it?"

"No, it's a friendly. Against Lithuania. We ought to beat them."

"Right," she was thinking quickly, "Listen, Jamie. How easy would it be to get a few free tickets for it?"

He raised his eyebrows.

"I've no idea. If you'd asked me a couple of weeks ago, I could have done it for sure, but it's tomorrow..."

"You're telling me they're sold out for a friendly against Lithuania?"

"I told you, I don't know. And I can't ask before tomorrow now. Why d'you want them, anyway? Who are you bringing?"

Rapidly, she poured out her thinking about Sirius, and some of the things he had said, leaving out the more personal bits.

"And I was going to say, why didn't we do something tomorrow and take him along," she finished, "But if you're playing Quidditch, I thought maybe we could come and watch. I know he likes Quidditch, even if he isn't quite as fanatical as you, and it would be fun. It would get him out of the house, anyway."

"Yeah, I guess it probably is driving him a bit mad," James agreed thoughtfully, "But you said 'a bunch.' Who else were you thinking of inviting?"

"I don't know," she said, vaguely, "Louis maybe, and Rose and Hugo, and Al if he wanted to come, but he's probably busy. And maybe Meri or someone. She's not that keen on Quidditch, but she'd probably be up for it. And Fred might be around..."

"Well, you can forget that," he informed her, "You know fine well our allowance for tickets is two. If you'd given me more notice, I might have been able to stretch it, but this late, you'll be lucky if you even get two. You'd be better off asking Mum for Press Passes."

Her face, which had fallen, brightened again. The Quidditch match seemed ideal, but she didn't particularly want it just to be her and Sirius. That would seem a little too much like asking him on a date.

"Good idea," she told him, "Nice one, Jamie. So you'll try and get a couple?"

"Yeah, why not? But hey, weren't you all supposed to be going to Grandma and Grandad's tomorrow?"

"Were we?" Lily looked surprised, "I didn't know that."

James rolled his eyes.

"Well, there's a surprise. When do you ever remember appointments?"

She looked annoyed.

"What do they want to have a family gathering _now _for? It isn't anyone's birthday or anything, is it?"

James shook his head.

"Nope. They just invited everyone over. It's been arranged for ages. I'm going to be late, obviously, because of the match..."

Lily grinned.

"You mean you're going to opt out of the after-match drinks in order to come to Grandma and Grandad's? What are you going to tell the team?"

He shrugged, also grinning ruefully.

"Family commitments. They'll laugh at me, but it's that or face the wrath of Grandma Weasley, and I know which I'd rather..."

"Well, listen," she went on, "Why can't we be late too? Grandma's dead proud of you playing for England; she won't make too much of a fuss about us going to watch you play. Especially if we tell her it's for Sirius. She's all prepared to make a fuss of him, because of the awful time he's had, and because she feels guilty about not giving him a warmer welcome when we all arrived back last weekend. We can come all come together after the match. Is it in the morning or the afternoon?"

"Starts at midday," James told her, "Worst possible time for a match. I'll be starving by the time it finishes..."

She ignored this.

"Good. We're going wand shopping in the morning, and then we'll come to the match. You get as many tickets as you can, and I'll see if I can scrounge a few more off the Daily Prophet. Let me know by Communicator tomorrow, as early as you can, and I'll rally the troops."

"Okay," he agreed, "But I'm not promising anything."

Ginny, when Lily tackled her privately later that evening, proved enthusiastic about the idea, although less keen on getting her daughter press passes. She reluctantly agreed, however, to provide one – only one though – on the condition that Lily wrote her a report on the match afterwards. Lily agreed readily to this, deciding that she would have plenty of time later to worry about the fact that she'd never written an article in her life.

"I can't give you more than one," Ginny said firmly, "We'd never send more than one reporter to a small match like that. It would just look ridiculous to have a whole crowd of you."

So when James informed her the following morning that he had managed to get her two tickets, that meant that she had room for one more person. She bounced downstairs triumphantly and asked Sirius if he would like to go to a Quidditch match today. He stared at her.

"A Quidditch match? Are you kidding? That'd be great…" his face changed as he realized something, "I don't have any money."

"No problem," she said breezily, "I've got three free ones. One's a press pass from Mum, which may be an issue if they try and make one of us sit in the Press Box. But I reckon we can work it. The others came straight from the star player himself…"

Sirius raised his eyebrows.

"That would be your brother, right?"

She grinned.

"Yes, but don't tell him I called him that. His head's big enough already."

He grinned back.

"Well, if it's free, who am I to turn it down? Sounds fantastic. Who else is coming?"

"Louis," she said firmly. She had called her cousin that morning, before coming downstairs. Unfortunately, it hadn't occurred to her that he might not be up yet, and apparently Louis, unlike James, _had_ been out on Friday night; at any rate, he had looked distinctly the worse for wear when she had dragged him out of bed. He had agreed however, a little groggily, that going to the match would be fun, provided that Grandma Weasley wasn't too annoyed at the wholesale upsetting of her plans.

Lily had been relieved. She had been in a little bit of a quandary about who to bring as the third, and had wanted to have it already arranged before talking to Sirius – otherwise, the whole 'looking-like-a-date' thing reared its head again.

Her first instinct had been one of her own friends, because that was who she'd normally invite to something like this (if she didn't have a real date). But somehow she didn't think Meri would appreciate being subjected to the Sirius Black treatment, which he seemed to role out for every attractive female under the age of thirty five. Claire would, but Lily found she didn't like that idea much herself.

Molly didn't like Quidditch, and Rose and Al were almost certainly busy. Louis was the perfect solution; being male, he was quite safe, and he was James' best friend, so it was perfectly natural for him to want to watch the match.

There was the drawback that he knew about her undecided feelings for Sirius, but Louis could generally be relied on to be discreet, and would probably actually help her out if need be. Although you couldn't count on that; sometimes he had annoyingly James-like fits, and decided that it would be more fun to watch you suffer.

Sirius, however, accepted Louis' inclusion without question, and she noted with satisfaction the success of her idea. Sirius was looking infinitely happier already, at the prospect of actually doing something.

"Oh yeah," she added, suddenly remembering, "But first, we're going to Diagon Alley to get you a new wand. And the match starts at twelve, so we'd better get a move on."


	26. Diagon Alley

**A/N: I really meant this chapter to be the Quidditch match, but it was getting very long... So sorry to the people who were looking forward to it, but I hope you like this. It is another entire chapter of Lily/Sirius interaction, though, for those of you who were complaining a few chapters back that we hadn't had much for a while. Not much in the way of plot, but lots of fun.**

**Thanks once more to my wonderful reviewers of the last chapter: arwenjanelilylyra, GetOfMyCarousel, Lily Ann Rose and Aunt Mo. **

**And to arwenjanelilylyra, I'm sorry I never replied to your last message, but fanfic wouldn't let me on the site, and then I was busy getting this up, and then I have to go to bed before I fall asleep here. I will reply tomorrow. Hopefully this new chapter makes up for it :-)**

* * *

Lily looked at Sirius' face as they stepped into Diagon Alley, lit by the May sunshine, but wasn't sure what to make of it. As far as she knew, it was the first time he had been here in this time.

"Has it changed much?" she asked.

He looked around.

"A bit. That used to be an ice cream place. And that was just called Quidditch Supplies in my day. And it was next door to the Magical Menagerie, opposite Gringotts…"

He stopped, an odd expression on his face for a moment, as he paused outside what was now named Quality Quidditch Supplies, then grinned.

"Listen to me. I sound like an old man."

"Well, just taking your birth date, you ought to be about seventy, so technically, you _are_ an old man…"

"Sixty eight, not seventy," he corrected her, "And anyway, that's not how it works…"

"Sixty _eight_?" she interrupted him, "You're taking years off yourself, Sirius. You'd be sixty nine. I worked it out."

"Then your maths is faulty," he told her cheerfully, "I'd definitely be sixty eight. I was born in April 1960. This is May 2028. The sums aren't that difficult."

She frowned, distracted.

"Oh. Did we miss your birthday?"

"No, it's at the beginning of April," he told her, "But anyway, I don't know when to celebrate my birthday any more. I mean, as far as my body's concerned, it's about December 1981, which means I'm three or four months off my twenty second birthday. But if I celebrated it four months from now, that would be September, not April. My calendar's all out."

"Well, I don't think it makes much difference," she said dryly, "Just call yourself twenty two, and say you'll turn twenty three next April. After all, you told me you were twenty one in November 1980, which you've just told me you can't have been, so accuracy obviously doesn't mean much to you…"

"Did I?" he grinned, "Sorry. Habit, I suppose. I've been telling people I'm twenty one since I was seventeen. I'd better get used to saying twenty two instead, I suppose. Although missing my twenty second birthday seems a bit unfair," he looked thoughtfully at her, "How old are you these days, anyway?"

She looked surprised.

"I told you how old I was. _I_ was telling the truth…"

"Yeah, but that was, what, eight or nine months ago for you. Are you still nineteen?"

"No, I'm twenty. My birthday's in November. Why?"

"No reason," he said, vaguely, "I just wondered."

They were now outside Flourish and Blotts, and still attracting stares, as they had been ever since they stepped into the Leaky Cauldron. Most people knew who Lily was; her parents' fame had dogged her for her whole life, and now her brother's had only added to it. And anyway, she lived and worked around Diagon Alley these days, so all the local business-people knew her for her own sake.

Thanks to the recent media attention, the people who might not have known what Sirius Black had looked like before his supposed long incarceration, could now hardly avoid knowing. It was not by any means the first time he had appeared in public; after all, when he first arrived, they had practically had to barricade the house against curious onlookers, as well as the press. And there had been the infamous radio interview… But it was the first time he had been spotted doing anything as normal as shopping in Diagon Alley.

A young woman rushed out of the book shop and thrust a book in his face. He blinked at it.

"Are you Sirius Black?" she asked, breathlessly, fluttering her eyelashes at him, and then went on, without waiting for a reply, "Could you sign this book for me? I _literally_ just bought it, because I saw you coming up the street. I never read it before, but I'm sure it's _fascinating_. _Everyone's_ reading it, now you're back…"

Sirius looked down at the book in his hands with some interest. It was called 'Sirius Black: The Man Behind the Mask.' He grinned broadly.

"They wrote a book about me? Merlin. They could have chosen a better picture."

The picture on the front was his prison picture; the one they had blazoned across the newspapers, back in 1994.

"Dad says it's full of crap," Lily said loudly, shooting an annoyed glance at the girl, whom she knew vaguely, although she couldn't remember her name, "As usual."

Sirius looked at it again.

"Rita Skeeter. She was that awful little Slytherin kid with the annoying laugh. Why the hell is _she _writing about me?"

"Same reason she wrote about anyone," Lily said, "To make money, and spread lies. It's what she likes."

"Yeah, she always did," Sirius agreed, "When was it written? Recently?"

"No, ages ago. After the war, when they first officially cleared your name. It's not one of her best works; she can't decide whether to portray you as the romantic wronged hero, or the mad, bad young man."

The girl was looking from one to the other.

"But… please will you sign it?" she pleaded.

Sirius turned his most charming smile on her.

"Of course. What's your name?"

Lily rolled her eyes, and pointedly examined the books in the window of Flourish and Blotts as Sirius proceededto flirt with the girl, and write her a long message in the cover of the book.

When she had gone, he turned back to Lily, smiling smugly.

Lily raised her eyebrows.

"Enjoying yourself?"

"Yep," his smile grew, "I wrote 'the bit on page one hundred and fifty four is absolutely true,' and I signed it Beadle the Bard. Good thing she didn't look at it before she took it away."

"What?" Lily stared at him for a moment, and then began to giggle, "Oh, Sirius! How do you know what it even says on page 154?"

"I don't. But I'm going to find out," and before she could say anything, he headed into the shop.

It wasn't hard to find a copy. A month ago, the book would have been tucked away, somewhere deep in the biography section, but now there were piles of them displayed prominently, near the door. Sirius seemed to find this extremely amusing, and took one off the pile, turning the pages to 154.

"Sirius!" Lily caught up with him, "We're in a hurry!"

"Oh, don't fuss," he said easily, finding the page. He glanced down it and burst out laughing.

"What's the betting that's all over the papers tomorrow?" he handed her the book, and she glanced at it, scanning down the page before bursting into horrified laughter.

"Oh, Sirius. Of all the pages you could have chosen!"

He grinned.

"Good, isn't it?"

The second paragraph began:

"_Black began his career as a womaniser early in life. Rumours have it that when he was in his fourth year at Hogwarts, young Sirius became intimately involved with one of his teachers at Hogwarts. Sources close to Black at the time have confirmed that the rumours 'may have some truth in them. There was one particular subject Black always got top marks in. I won't say which, and I'm not saying the two things were connected, but… well, everyone wondered.' Coy words, but the real facts of the case are easily read between the lines…"_

Lily stopped there, and looked up at him.

"Is it true?"

"No!" he exclaimed indignantly, "What a horrible thought! Anyway," he went on smugly, "I got top marks in practically all my subjects, because I happened to have brains…"

"But _were_ there rumours?" she persisted curiously.

"Not as far as I know," he shrugged, "Maybe in the Slytherin Common Room. My fourth year. That would have been Skeeter's first, I think. She probably started them herself."

"I notice they don't accuse any particular teacher," she said thoughtfully, "I bet that was her publishers, afraid of law suits for slander. Rita Skeeter never refrained from giving all the details of a scandal before."

She looked back down at the page and started to giggle again.

"Well, there are certainly going to be rumours now. On the other hand, she may so humiliated when she sees how you've signed it, she may never tell anyone. That was really mean, Sirius. All she wanted was an autograph."

"What for? I haven't done anything."

Lily rolled her eyes.

"Except, you know, travel fifty years through time and arrive in a time where you're officially dead. And you were pretty famous before that, actually, what with being the person everyone thought betrayed the Potters, the first person ever to escape from Azkaban, turning out to be innocent and dying a hero's death. I don't think you can be surprised that people want your autograph."

"Well, whatever. She was an idiot, anyway. I wish I could buy this book…"

Lily sighed and pulled out her purse.

"For Merlin's sake, go and buy it, if you want it. Although why you want to read a biography of yourself that's full of lies, I can't even imagine…"

"Well, it's more interesting than reading a biography of myself that only tells the truth," he pointed out, "I _know_ the truth."

He looked at the money she was holding out to him, and hesitated.

"Pay me back when you get a job," she told him. He made up his mind and grinned at her.

"Well, okay. Thanks."

He took the galleons from her and approached the desk. A stressed-looking shop assistant was very busy sorting through a pile of books on the desk, and barely glanced up as Sirius came up to him.

"Ten Galleons," he said briefly, looking at the book, and then his brain seemed to catch up with what his eyes had seen in that brief glance at his customer. He stopped, and looked up again, and his mouth fell open.

Sirius saw Lily, convulsed with laughter, from the corner of his eye. He looked away quickly and smiled blandly at the man behind the desk, offering the money. The man continued to stare.

"I… you're…" his eyes moved slowly down again to the book in front of him, then back up to the politely smiling young man, "But… why…?"

"I thought it might make an interesting read," Sirius told him pleasantly.

"But… but… you're _Sirius_ _Black_!"

"Yes," Sirius agreed cheerfully, "At least, I always assumed I was."

Suddenly the stressed shop assistant broke out into a beam.

"But, that's wonderful, sir! You know, I can't tell you how glad people are that you're back… at least, not exactly _back_… but you know what I mean…" he grabbed Sirius' hand and shook it hard, "And don't try to pay me, sir. You're… you're _entitled_ to that book. It's yours, sir. Free. Gratis. It was an honour just to serve you, sir."

Sirius looked a bit surprised at this outburst, and then the trademark smile appeared.

"Well, thanks. It was an honour doing business with a man like you." He shook the man's hand warmly, and picked up the book.

Outside the shop, Lily looked at him with amusement.

"You did that on purpose."

"Did what on purpose? All I did was try and buy a book," he said innocently.

"And where did that last line come from?" she went on, "An honour doing business with him? You_ didn't_ do business with him."

Sirius laughed.

"Don't be so literal minded. He was going on about honour, so it seemed the right sort of thing to see. It made him happy, anyway. And I got the book for free, so here's your money back."

He handed her the Galleons he had taken, but just as she was putting them away in her purse, a voice yelled, "Lily!"

The door to a nearby shop opened, and a tall, dark skinned young man came rushing out and flung his arms around her, beaming.

"Little Lil! I haven't seen you for ages!" he released her, and looked affectionately down at her, then round at her companion, "You must be Sirius Black. Good to meet you." He held out his hand.

"Er, yeah, that's right," Sirius said, stiffly, shaking hands briefly. He looked, Lily thought, angry, and she wondered frantically what had annoyed him. The other young man was looking between the two of them, quizzically.

"I'm Fred," he went on, mildly, "Lily's cousin."

"Oh!" Sirius' frown cleared, and he grinned suddenly, "Right. I've heard about you."

He glanced up at the shop Fred had come flying out of, and sure enough, the legend above the door read 'Weasley's Wizard Wheezes,' and the window was filled with brightly coloured gadgets and things that looked like fireworks.

"Have you got time to come into the shop?" Fred asked, "Dad and Uncle Ron are both out, so it's just me."

Fred Weasley had never had any higher ambition than to join his father in business as soon as possible, much to George's delight, and he had been taken on as a sort of apprentice as soon as he left school. As he was a couple of years older than James and Louis, that had been some years ago, and the talent he soon displayed as an extremely persuasive salesman had seen him promoted to the chief 'front of house' man. That left George, and Ron, who had joined his brother recently, after his retirement from the Auror Office, to concentrate on the development of new products.

Sirius, glancing at the products for sale in the shop window, looked enthusiastic about this idea, but Lily was frowning.

"No, sorry Fred, we're in a bit of a hurry," she said, in an abrupt voice that made her cousin look at her in surprise.

"I suppose we are," Sirius agreed reluctantly, "But I'd love to see it some time."

"Well, drop in any time. I'm usually here, and if I'm not, Naomi probably will be, and you'd probably rather see her anyway. She's much prettier than me."

They said goodbye to Fred, who told them he'd see them later, reminding Lily of the family dinner at the Burrow, and they carried on towards the wand shop.

Lily tried to banish the irritation that had flooded her at Sirius' reaction to Fred. It was nothing; it was probably, in fact, entirely her own imagination, for it had only lasted for about a second. Not long enough for her to be sure what she had seen. The trouble was that what she thought she had seen was exactly the reaction her brother James had every time a semi-attractive male of a suitable age behaved in a friendly way towards her. That sudden stiffness and disapproval, until he realised that Fred was her cousin. Surely Sirius wasn't going to start behaving like James, and being protective over her? That would be a complete nightmare – and a very _ironic_ nightmare too, she thought with an inward groan, almost able to see the funny side of it.

Sirius stared up at the extremely old sign above the door of the wand shop.

"Ollivander? Don't say he's still here!"

"No, he died years ago. Before I was born, I think. Definitely before I started Hogwarts. Always assuming you knew the same one Mum and Dad did; the shop's been in the family for ever," she indicated the sign, on which it said, just legibly, that the Ollivanders had been making wands since 382 BC, "but I think he was pretty old, so you probably did. I think the one there now's some sort of cousin."

She pushed open the door and they stepped inside. Sirius gazed round himself, looking, for the first time, at somewhere that had not changed at all since the last time he stood in it. He had been eleven years old then, and his mother had been beside him. She had been angry with him at the time, he recalled, because he had wandered off while she was in Gringott's. But then, she had usually been angry with him. Regulus had been there too, watching enviously as his brother received his first wand.

No, it was not quite unchanged, he realised with a slight shock. The person coming towards them was not old Ollivander. It was a woman, in her late thirties, with long dark hair and dark lipstick. She stared at them for a moment, her eyes running over them, and gleaming as they rested on Sirius.

"Well, well," she smiled at them, and he wondered how she did it without the copious layer of make-up she had on cracking, "What can I do for two young people like yourselves?"

Although she said two, it was the only sign she gave that she had even noticed there was more than one of them, Lily thought with amusement. She had not glanced in Lily's direction, although in fact, they knew each other; the shop Lily worked in was only a few doors away.

"My friend needs a wand," she said loudly. The woman positively beamed when she heard that it was Sirius who wanted the wand.

"Sirius Black," she said with relish, "I never expected to see you in my shop. Well, I'm sure we can find you something. What was your first wand made of?"

"Beech," Sirius replied, "Dragon Heartstring core."

"Hm," she replied noncommittally, "Well, you're a little older than my average customer. But I'll still have to take some measurements…"

She drew out a measuring tape and proceeded to take measurements. It seemed to take far longer and to involve much more touching than usual, to Lily's amusement and Sirius' increasing discomfort.

Then of course, there was the wand testing, while Ms Ollivander talked about how delightful it was to have customers other than the usual run of eleven-year-olds and their parents, and teenagers who had managed to break their wands. Her conversation was accompanied by continuous suggestive glances at Sirius and frequent hand-touching as she handed over different wands, and she stood much too close to him the whole time.

When he had finished trying his sixth wand, Lily said:

"You don't mind if I leave you to finish here, do you, Sirius, and nip across the road to get something? I won't be long…"

"Hold on," he said casually, "I won't be much longer, I hope." As the woman moved away to fetch the seventh wand, though, he grabbed Lily's wrist firmly and leaned over to hiss in her ear:

"Don't you dare! You're staying here!"

She grinned teasingly at him, but decided not to abandon him.

Finally, with a new wand made from the wood of the Alder tree, they emerged from the shop into Diagon Alley, and Lily allowed the stifled giggles to escape.

"Very funny," he glared at her, "Merlin, I thought I wasn't going to escape! What a terrifying woman!"

"Don't worry," Lily reassured him, her eyes dancing, "She's like that with every decent-looking man she meets. She's well-known for it, and she doesn't seem to think that age matters at all. So long as they're overage, they're fair game. Rumours are that she's corrupted the innocence of any number of susceptible young men."

"I can believe it," Sirius sent a traumatised glance back at the shop.

"Not that that would have been an issue for you," Lily went on calmly, "As you don't have much innocence left to corrupt."

It wasn't until afterwards that she realised that this was certainly true, and that Ms Ollivander was actually still relatively young, and quite attractive, and that there was really no real reason why Sirius should have been quite so averse to the idea, especially given the reputation he had, and which he had candidly told her that he fully deserved.

If Meri had been there, she would probably have advised her friend to compare Sirius' reaction to Lily's own out-of-character behaviour to the man in the bar, a few days previously.

Unfortunately, Meri was not there, and it never occurred to Lily.

* * *

**The Quidditch match next time, I promise. And hopefully the gathering at the Burrow too, unless I find it getting too long again.**

**Just out of interest, which family members would people like to see there? I don't think the entire family will be there, because trying to get everyone into the story just gets messy, but who do people want to meet/see more of? Also, should Teddy Lupin be there?**


	27. Meeting the Family

**Disclaimer: I do not own JK Rowling's characters or world**

**A/N: Ok, so thanks and brownies to: AuntMo, ladeeda, Lady Drama, LilyGinnyBlack (extra helpings for that LONG, LONG review :-)), arwenjanelilylyra, chiriko1117 and ermireallydontcare for the latest set of reviews. Sorry there's been a slight delay in updates - as some of you know, I was busy finishing my other story, Playing with Fiendyre.**

**This only gets half way through the family party at the Burrow, but the chapter was getting long, and I still have a lot of stuff at the Burrow to get in, so I thought another chapter was called for...**

**I asked at the end of the last chapter who/what people wanted to see at the Burrow, and got a few requests, so just to show you I do listen to you:**

**1. More Harry/Sirius interaction. That made me realise I'd been neglecting Harry a bit, but a big family gathering doesn't really seem the place for meaningful conversations, considering that Sirius is living in Harry's house, and they're presumably seeing each other every day. Harry doesn't really feature in this chapter, but there will be more of him in the next chapter or two.**

**2. A conversation between Sirius and Percy. I thought this was a really interesting idea, even though it doesn't really add anything to the plot. It hasn't made this chapter, but watch out for it later.**

**3. The reappearance of Fred. Check.**

**4. People like Roxanne and Dominique coming into it - well, they are THERE, although they haven't really had roles. Yet. Funny, nobody asked for Hugo, although he hasn't come into it yet either.**

**5. Louis. Check.**

**6. The name of James' girlfriend, who has had a couple of brief mentions. Ok, this wasn't exactly a request, but it was a question (which only one person thought to ask). One which is not going to be answered in this fic, because it would ruin the one I'm going to do next.**

**7. Oh yeah... and Teddy Lupin. Just about all of you asked for Teddy, so I gave in, even though it meant rushing to finish Playing with Fiendfyre, and completely ruining the lovely ambiguous ending I had for that fic. Sigh. But readers of both now get to find out how that one really ended, and if Teddy and Victoire did get back together. See what I do for you?**

**Sorry for the long Author's Note. I'm going to stop rambling now. Enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

The Quidditch ground was crowded, and with everybody excited about the game (even though it was not a significant one), they got less attention than they had in Diagon Alley. Lily had been a little afraid someone would make a fuss about the Press Pass, because it was no use one of them pretending to be an official journalist, because everyone _knew_ who they were. The only person who might get away with it was Louis, so she had given that one to him. In the event, though, the man checking tickets hardly glanced at them, but told her, "VIP Box is that way," and said to Louis, "Press Stand up there."

Once through, they looked at each other.

"Do we split?" Louis asked.

"Not unless you particularly want to have to pretend to be a journalist for the whole match," Lily told him, "Just come with us. There's always lots of room in the top box, and nobody's going to look at our tickets now. People know who we are; nobody's going to question it."

Louis grinned at her.

"Not like you to be taking advantage of your fame."

Lily looked annoyed for a moment, then grinned.

"I'm not. Not really. I'm taking advantage of Jamie's."

They made their way up to the top box, which, as Lily had predicted, was fairly empty.

"James plays Chaser, doesn't he?" Sirius asked curiously.

Lily nodded.

"So does Lily," Louis added.

"But not for England," Lily said dryly, "Poor Dad. I think he's a bit disappointed that none of us turned into Seekers. Al doesn't really play at all, and Jamie and I both followed in Mum's footsteps."

"What about you?" Sirius asked Louis, "Do you play?"

"Not seriously. I mean, I used to play as a kid, but I was never on the Gryffindor team or anything. Even though my best mate _was_ captain for two and a half years."

"Two and a _half_?" Sirius stared at him, "How did he manage that?"

"Long story," Lily said wryly, "James did something stupid for the right reasons, and almost got himself expelled half way through his seventh year. He _wasn't _expelled, obviously…" she paused for a moment, thinking about the part she herself had played in this, "but they took the captaincy off him."

"Wow," Sirius considered this, "Well, I don't know about your brother, but I know if that had happened to your grandfather, he'd have been pretty bloody upset."

"He was," Lily began, but at that moment, the voice of the commentator announced the arrival of the players, and the conversation was cut short.

It was a good day for Quidditch; dry, but not too bright. The game was a good one too; England dominated from the beginning, but Lithuania put up a good enough fight that the result was not a foregone conclusion. The scores remained close, so that if either team caught the snitch, they would have won. Lily, glancing at Sirius at one point, found him engrossed in the game, his face animated in a way she hadn't often seen it, and she was satisfied that her idea had been a good one. She had worried a little, in case Quidditch brought back painful memories of the first James Potter, who of course had played too. But almost everything was going to have memories attached to it, and they couldn't avoid it completely. And earlier, he had mentioned his best friend and sounded perfectly normal about it.

She turned back to the game herself, a smile on her lips.

At one point, after a particularly spectacular goal from James, he leaned over to her, to be heard above the cheering.

"He's bloody good!" he called in her ear.

"I know. But don't tell him that!" she called back, thinking more about Sirius' proximity to her, and his breath on her ear, than her older brother's Quidditch talent.

She caught Louis' eye, and he raised an eyebrow at her.

Lithuania would have caught the snitch after half an hour, if one of England's Beaters hadn't hit a bludger in the right direction just in time. In the event, it was England's Seeker who eventually grabbed it, in a less than spectacular manner. In fact, the commentator, the referee, and everyone else, were watching Lithuania score a goal up at the other end, and nobody noticed Laura Braithwaite make a sudden short dive, and snatch the thing from beside one of Lithuania's goal posts. It was the Lithuanian Keeper's shout that alerted them to it, and then there was a heated argument over whether or not the Lithuanian Chaser had scored the goal before or after Braithwaite had caught the snitch. It was eventually decided that he had scored before, and England grudgingly ceded the point; after all, it made no difference to the actual result. James hovered in front of the top box for a moment before heading down to the ground, and called a greeting to the three who had been watching him.

"Well played," Sirius told him, with a grin.

"Thanks," James grinned back, elated by the victory, "Give me fifteen minutes and I'll meet you outside."

"Fifteen minutes?" his sister demanded, "Aren't you planning on showering?"

He scowled at her.

"Of course I am. We don't all take forty five minutes to have a shower."

He disappeared before she could retort.

* * *

When James appeared, a good forty minutes later, his sister smirked at him.

"So much for fifteen minutes…"

"Yeah, well," James said airily, "I had to talk to the rest of the team, didn't I? I couldn't just disappear. How are we getting there?"

"Apparition?" Louis suggested, "That's the usual way, isn't it?"

Lily glanced at Sirius, suddenly remembering that he had claimed to be even worse at Apparition than she was. She herself had been practicing lately, and had improved a lot, but Sirius was looking decidedly uncomfortable.

"Erm… yeah, about that," he said, "I'm not that great at Apparition…" James and Louis looked at him in surprise, and he grinned ruefully, "Yeah, I know. There aren't _many _things I can't do, but Apparition happens to be one of them. And I've only just got a new wand…"

"Oh, okay," James agreed, "You don't want to be experimenting with spells that aren't your strongest, when you've got a brand new wand. What's the wand like, by the way?"

"I don't know. I haven't tried it yet."

Lily realised with a shock that this was true. She would have expected Sirius to have had the wand out as soon as they were out of the shop, but in the rush to get to the Quidditch match, it hadn't occurred to her to think about it. Well, it seemed like his reluctance to return to using magic did not only exist when he was having a fit of depression, which was a little worrying.

James and Louis were looking even more surprised. They themselves would have lost no time in trying a new wand.

"We were in a hurry," Sirius said, by way of explanation, although it sounded to Lily more like an excuse, "I didn't have time."

"Oh, well," James said easily, accepting the explanation, although Lily wondered what he was thinking, "You can come side-along with me, and we can test the wand when we get to Grandma and Grandad's."

They apparated to the Burrow. James, Louis and Sirius landed neatly in front of the door. Lily landed a few metres down the garden, to James' amusement. Louis rang the doorbell, and soon they were ushered into a house that seemed remarkably full of people, all talking at once.

The Burrow had not changed much in the previous thirty years, except that on an average day, it was significantly less crowded than it had been in the days when there were always at least four or five children in the house. Today, though, the Weasleys had come home en masse.

Three of the original children were missing; Uncle Fred, of course, had been missing for a long time. Today, Uncle George was not there either, as he had gone up to Scotland for some kind of mysterious business deal; what it could be, Lily could not imagine, unless he had finally achieved his long-term ambition to take over the failing Zonko's Joke Shop in Hogsmeade. And Uncle Charlie lived in Romania, so could not be expected to pop over for dinner.

But the ranks were swelled by the numbers of grandchildren; not to mention great-grandchildren. At least, there was one great-grandchild, who flung herself into Lily's arms with a shriek of joy, as soon as she stepped through the door. Lily was her favourite of all her mother's many cousins, and they hadn't seen each other for a good few weeks.

"Hey, Jess," Lily grinned down at the child, who looked up at her from big blue eyes framed by dark fair hair.

"Lily!" the child beamed at her, "tum an' see my new boom!"

"New boom?" Lily looked puzzled.

"Broom, she means," Jess' mother had followed her out of the kitchen, "It's a toy, obviously," she smiled at the newcomers, "Hello, everyone. You must be Sirius. I'm sorry I haven't been round to see you, but what with work, and Jess, and this…" she gestured at a stomach that was slightly swollen with what would clearly be Jess' baby brother or sister in a few months, "I just haven't had a moment. I'm Victoire Weasley, by the way."

"My sister," Louis put in, and looked sternly at Jess, as Sirius shook hands with Victoire, "Don't I get a hug, or are they all for Lily?"

The little girl held out her arms to him, with an angelic smile.

"You tan have a hug too, Nuncle Louis!"

"And this," Louis addressed Sirius again, as he scooped the child up, "in case you hadn't guessed, is my niece. Meet Miss Jessica Lupin."

Sirius' jaw dropped, and he looked accusingly at Lily.

"What? You never told me…"

"That Teddy Lupin's married to Louis' sister?" Lily looked vague, "Sorry. I forgot."

"Then your memory's pretty awful," Victoire remarked, "It was only just over three years ago, and you were a bridesmaid. Remember that?"

"Of course I remember," said Lily crossly, "I meant I forgot to tell Sirius… And I don't see why it should have been my responsibility to tell him everything anyway. Someone else could have done it just as easily."

Sirius was looking wonderingly at Jessica.

"Moony's granddaughter. I should have guessed. Apart from the colour of her eyes, she looks like him."

Victoire laughed.

"Yes, she's got my eyes. And I think, other than that, she looks like Teddy too, although it's hard to tell…"

"She's not just 'Moony's granddaughter,'" Lily put in, "She's related to you, too. Her grandmother was your cousin. I told you that ages ago."

"My cousin's daughter," Sirius corrected her, "It was Andromeda who was my first cousin, not Dora. The only one of my cousins I ever got on with. What happened to her, by the way?"

"Oh, she's fine," Lily said breezily, "Lives in Kent. We see her quite often, but I don't think she's coming today."

"No, she's not," Victoire agreed, "But she wants to see you, Sirius. She just didn't think that a big family gathering was the right time. I think she'd like to see you first in a bit of a quieter setting."

"Right," Sirius agreed uncertainly, "I… I didn't know she was still alive."

"Of course she is," Victoire said briskly, "Why would you assume she was dead? She's only seventy four. Her sister's alive too…"

Sirius looked alarmed.

"Which one?"

"Narcissa, of course. Bellatrix died in the war, and she and Andromeda never spoke anyway. Not that _we _ever see anything of the Malfoys. Narcissa sent a card when Jess was born, though."

"Lily!" Jessica had tired of the conversation, "Tum an' see my boom!"

"I'm coming, sweetie," Lily told her, "But I'm going to go and say hello to everyone else first, okay?"

Jessica stuck her bottom lip out, but she took Lily's hand as they headed for the kitchen.

Sirius, looking slightly bemused by it all, leaned over to Lily as they approached the door.

"Bloody hell," he murmured, looking at Victoire's back as she walked ahead of them, "She's stunning!"

Lily grinned at him, finding that she did not mind the comment. It was clearly a more or less objective remark, as Victoire was happily married; more a comment on the quality of girl Remus' son had managed to get, than an observation on Sirius' own account.

"Yes, she is," Lily agreed, "It's the Veela blood."

"Oh," Sirius looked startled, and glanced at Louis, "I didn't realise…"

They were greeted vociferously by a lot of people at once. Several people demanded to know how the game had gone, so James informed them. Grandma Weasley bustled round, offering them tea, and the remainders of lunch, which James accepted gratefully, not having eaten yet. The others had bought food and eaten it during the match. Lily found herself dragged off by Jessica, while Sirius became the focus of most people's attention.

Most of them were unknown to him, although the names were beginning to be familiar. Rose was there, and Albus, and the young man called Fred, whom he had met that morning. Molly was not; he thought he remembered Lily saying something about her being away with her boyfriend this weekend. He had met the Weasley grandparents, as well as Louis' parents and a few others, very briefly the previous weekend, but he could not really say that he had been taking much in at that point.

There were also a few he had not met at all, including Victoire. He was introduced to Roxanne, Fred's sister and Lily's colleague, and to Fred and Roxy's mother, Angelina. There were also Molly's parents, Percy and Audrey (their younger daughter, Lucy, was in her final year at Hogwarts, and it was term time), Louis' other sister, Dominique, and Rose's brother, Hugo.

And of course, there was Teddy Lupin, who had been there last weekend, but whom Sirius had not had a chance to look at properly, let along talk to. He was a young man of around thirty; tall and well-built with quietly humorous eyes and, on this occasion, dark brown hair. He took no part in the general fuss around Sirius, but sat at the back, watching with something like amusement. Sirius, however, could not help his eyes being drawn to the older man in curiosity, and when he caught Teddy's eye, got a cheerful grin.

When people's focus had begun to disperse again, however (James was busy giving a blow-by-blow account of the match to his parents, his Uncle Ron, and Fred and Hugo, and other people had returned to the conversations they had been having before the newcomers had arrived), Teddy got up and strolled over to where Sirius was still sitting with Louis, Rose and Albus.

"Well," he said, seating himself on a kitchen chair, "We met briefly last weekend, but we didn't really get a chance to talk. I'm Teddy Lupin, by the way."

"Yes, I know," Sirius replied, staring at the young man. Superficially, he wasn't much like Remus. He was taller, with broader shoulders, and he was much healthier-looking. That, of course, wasn't surprising; Remus' look of ill-health had come from his condition, which Sirius already knew that Teddy did not share. But it was more than that; Remus had always had the look of a scholar, who spends his days among books, while Teddy looked as if he spent most of his time out-of-doors. And of course, as Teddy could change his appearance at will, his colouring and features didn't owe much to his father. Yet, once you looked beyond the obvious things, Sirius could see a resemblance to Remus Lupin. It was in the shape of his face, and the expression in his eyes, and the way he smiled.

He had got used to the Potters, but seeing Moony's son was another shock to the system.

"You won't remember your dad," he said abruptly.

"No," said Teddy, quietly, "although I've seen pictures. And I've heard stories all my life," he grinned suddenly, "You featured in quite a lot of them."

Sirius laughed.

"I would have done," he face sobered suddenly, "I miss him, you know. I miss him almost as much as I miss James," he smiled, more seriously, "I'm glad he got married though, even if it was to my baby cousin. And I'm glad he had a kid… Not that you _are_ a kid," he added hastily, looking at the man who was some years his senior.

Teddy smiled back.

"No, not exactly," he agreed, "Must be bloody weird for you, having to learn to live in a time when your friends' kids are older than you are."

"Just a bit," Sirius laughed again, "Especially when their grandchildren are too," he looked over at James, "He's older than me. And I think you are too, technically speaking," he said to Albus.

"Not much," Rose put in, "Not enough to notice. And James still behaves like a sixteen-year-old, so you're all right there."

Teddy laughed.

"How are the various trainings going, you two?" he asked Albus and Rose, changing the subject slightly.

"Fine," Rose replied, "At least, mine is. It's bloody hard work, of course. And with all the stuff that's been going on recently, I'm practically doing the work of a proper Auror, although I haven't taken my final exams yet."

Sirius frowned. Harry had talked quite a lot about the 'stuff' that was going on, and it had sounded ominous to him. Of course, there was no Dark Lord now, but it certainly seemed that there was a lot of Dark Magic going on at the moment. But Rose had clearly said all that she was going to say on the subject.

"Yeah, mine's all right too," Albus agreed, "I got one exam over with last week, but I've got another one next week, so the work doesn't stop. Next year, I'll be doing more practical stuff though, and getting some experience in St Mungo's itself, so that'll be good."

"What do you do?" Sirius asked Teddy.

"Well, you might not believe it – I'm not sure I do myself, quite – but I teach at Hogwarts. Care of Magical Creatures. I just started this year. Before that, I did various Magical Creature-related stuff."

"Wow," Sirius grinned, "Professor Lupin. Remus would have been pleased."

"Well, Remus was Professor Lupin himself," Rose pointed out, "Teddy's only following in the family footsteps."

"He was?" Sirius looked startled, "Oh well, I shouldn't be surprised. Remus was always cut out to be a professor. What did he teach?"

"Defence against the Dark Arts," said Albus, "But I'm surprised nobody had told you…"

"There's quite a lot nobody's told me," said Sirius ruefully, "I mean, people never stop telling me things, but there's so much to catch up on… But does that mean they lifted the curse on that job? When I was there, it was an old story that no Defence Professor ever lasted beyond a year."

Rose swiftly filled him in on that story, and as she finished, Lily re-entered the room, accompanied by Jessica, who made a beeline for her father and clambered onto his knee.

"I take it you've met this one?" Teddy asked Sirius.

Sirius nodded.

"She looks like Remus."

Teddy looked thoughtfully at his daughter.

"You know, I never thought of it, but she does, doesn't she? Apart from the eyes…"

Jessica fixed those blue eyes on Sirius.

"Who're you?"

"My name's Sirius," he said, gravely, "And your Uncle Louis told me you were Jessica."

"Who's Remus?" she demanded, evidently having picked up on the conversation.

"Remus was my daddy," Teddy informed her, "But he died a long time before you were born."

"Oh," Jessica turned back to her father, "Daddy, I shown Lily my new boom."

"That's nice. Did she like it?"

"Yus!" Jessica nodded happily, "An' I shown her how to ride it."

"Oh, I see," Teddy grinned at Lily, "Did you let her have a go?"

Jessica looked reproachfully at him.

"No, Daddy," she said, as if speaking to someone rather stupid, "She's too big."

"Oh, off course she is," Teddy agreed, as though this was a new revelation, and then looked over his daughter's head at the others, "Molly and Arthur gave it to her, and she's already obsessed. I reckon we're going to have another Quidditch player on our hands."

* * *

A little while later, Rose sat down in a quiet corner beside Albus, and looked over to where Sirius was still the centre of an interested little crowd.

"Well, I would say I felt sorry for him," she remarked, "But actually, I think he's enjoying it."

Albus grinned.

"Yes, I don't think it bothers him," he agreed, "Judging by the rumours he's managed to spread about himself already."

Rose looked thoughtful.

"What do you think of it all?"

Albus looked surprised.

"Well… It's all a bit weird. But I've been a bit out of it, with these exams. And it's less weird for us than it is for, say, Dad. I mean, to us, he's a stranger…"

"I think he's more or less a stranger to your dad too," Rose commented, "He can't really think of him as the same person as his godfather."

"No, I suppose not," Albus assented, "I suppose the only person he really isn't a complete stranger to is Lily."

Rose nodded, and glanced thoughtfully at Albus. She had thought, last weekend, before everything had been driven out of her head by Sirius' disappearance, that there might be something going on between Lily and Sirius. Not that it was that surprising. Lily always had something going on with somebody, and it never lasted more than a couple of months, if that. But it had struck Rose that that particular one might be awkward.

She hadn't really thought of it since, having dismissed it as probably her imagination (and she _had_ been pretty drunk). But judging by the expression on Albus' face, something similar might have occurred to him. Rose could read Albus well.

They were suddenly joined by Fred, who slid into the seat between them and grinned at them.

"What are you two whispering about over here?"

He followed their eyes over to Sirius. Lily was close beside him, not actually taking part in the conversation he was having with James and Teddy, but playing with Jessica instead. Fred narrowed his eyes.

"What's going on with those two?" he asked abruptly.

Rose's eyebrows shot up.

"What makes you think there's something going on?"

"Well, I saw them in Diagon Alley this morning. I went up and gave Lily a hug, and Sirius seemed very upset about it, until I told him who I was, and then he relaxed and was fine. Just made me wonder…"

"Yes, I've been doing some wondering too," Albus said ruefully, "Something Lily said… and then, just the way she's been acting. Or rather, the way she _hasn't_ been acting. _Something's_ not quite right. Of course, I haven't really had any chance to watch them together. But I know Lily."

Fred was looking alarmed.

"Yeah, but she wouldn't be stupid enough to… would she?"

"Well, I've never known Lily get upset by anyone before," Albus said, not really answering the question, "She just sort of… _floats_ through relationships. Doesn't think about a guy until he asks her out, then messes around with him for a bit before ditching him and moving on to the next one. She never wastes time worrying about it."

"But that's not what's happening here, is it?" Fred asked, "I mean, it couldn't, not the way things are. Are you saying you think Lily actually likes him? Because I got the impression it might be the other way round. Either way, it gets a bit weird, doesn't it?"

Albus shrugged.

"I don't know. Lily's never exactly been that careful about who she gets involved with. I wouldn't put it past her. But it isn't like her to get miserable over a guy when they _aren't _involved."

"You don't think there _is_ something going on between them?" Fred looked slightly horrified, "Your dad would freak out a bit, wouldn't he? Not to mention Jamie…"

"James needs to get over trying to tell Lily what to do," Albus said impatiently, "And he needs to get used to the fact that she's an adult now, and she can have boyfriends if she wants. But I have to admit, he'd have something legitimate to freak out about, with that one. I'm pretty sure that if there _was_ anything, someone would have picked up on it by now though. I mean, Sirius has been living in my mum and dad's house, and Lily lives with Moll. They haven't exactly had the chance to get up to much in secret."

"Well, I tell you who knows something if anyone does," Rose spoke for the first time in a while, "Louis."

"_Louis_?" The other two stared at her.

She nodded.

"I'm pretty sure Lily told him something last weekend. I only overheard part of it, so I didn't get it. But I think he probably knows more than we do…"

Fred raised his eyebrows.

"All right."

He got up from his seat, wandered over to where Louis was standing not far away, put his arm around his cousin's shoulders, smoothly extracted him from the conversation he had been taking part in, and steered him over to Rose and Albus.

"Hey!" Louis pulled back half-heartedly, "What the hell?"

"Sit!" Fred pushed Louis down into the seat he himself had vacated, and perched on the edge of the table, "Now, what's Lily been confiding in you?"

A wary expression came over Louis' face.

"About what?"

"I don't know," Fred replied, "That's why I'm asking you."

"Well, I don't know what you're on about," Louis told him, recovering from his surprise and rallying, "She hasn't told me anything. What _should_ she have told me?"

"Come on, Lou," Rose said, "I heard her. Last weekend, after Sirius had disappeared. You two were in the study, and she was definitely saying something…"

Louis glanced round worriedly.

"We're not exactly in the most private place…"

"Nobody's listening. Come on, Louis. Tell Cousin Fred," Fred said coaxingly.

Louis looked annoyed.

"No. I'm not telling you all Lily's business. And anyway, she didn't tell me anything. Not anything important."

Rose rolled her eyes.

"Louis…"

"She's gone and fallen for Sirius, hasn't she?" Albus interrupted, keeping his voice quiet.

Louis looked at him and sighed.

"If you already knew, why ask me?"

"We didn't know, but we do now," Rose said, "How badly?"

Louis shrugged.

"I don't know. No, honestly, I don't. Lily doesn't make a habit of confiding her whole life to me. It was only that night, and she didn't even know herself. I don't think she'd really fallen for him. She liked him, and she was attracted to him," he glanced across the room at where the two people they were discussing were still close together, "Which you can't really blame her for, can you? But she was just confused. I told her she should just nip it in the bud and forget about it. Because it can't go anywhere, obviously. And this is Lily; she shouldn't have too much trouble moving on," he glared at them all, "But I swore I wouldn't tell anyone, especially James."

"Well, none of us are James," Albus pointed out.

"And we'd all guessed anyway," Fred put in, "They're not doing the best job of hiding it, are they? I wonder when James is going to catch on…"

"I wonder if he already has," Rose said thoughtfully, "We never did find out what they were arguing about last weekend, did we? But if so, I think Lily must have managed to reassure him, because we haven't heard anything about it since. And Jamie's not someone to let something drop…"

"He suspects something," Louis admitted, "He was asking me if I'd noticed anything. I don't think he suspects… well, I think what he really thinks is that Sirius might be after Lily. I had to tell him I didn't think there was anything it. Because I didn't. I only knew what Lily had told me, which was that Sirius wasn't interested. And I think James accepted it, and decided he'd been wrong. But now Fred says something different…"

Fred shrugged.

"Well, I don't know anything. I only wondered."

"We're going to have to keep an eye on it though," Rose concluded, "I mean, I know you were just saying she's an adult who can look after herself, Al. And that's true to a certain extent. But you were also just saying that Lily's not all that careful about who she falls for, and that's true too. Personally, I can't really imagine how she could go for Sirius; the whole thing would be a bit too weird for me. But this is Lily. We need to keep an eye on her."


	28. A Reunion

**Disclaimer: I don't own any more than I did last time. Which was basically nothing.**

**A/N: I'm not sure how this chapter got so long - I was going to finish the Burrow this time, but my characters keep think of more things they want to do. So after battling on through writer's block for the first half of the week, I was just getting into it when I realised I'd actually written an entire chapter without noticing. So here it is. There seems to be a lot of talking, and some of it may simply seem like a continuation of the conversation at the end of the last chapter, but it's all leading somewhere, I promise. And I did _finally_ get round to writing the thing that made me have a family gathering at the Burrow in the first place - which nobody seems to have predicted, even though I clearly pointed it out a few chapters ago ;-)**

**Thanks and brownies for ermireallydontcare, chiriko1117, arwenjanelilylyra, shine lots, Queen of Monkey Magic and Aunt Mo for their reviews.**

**Oh, and I just posted a oneshot featuring Sirius, set in the days when the first James and Lily were still alive (with J and L as main characters). It's a bit of light relief really, but Sirius is fairly prominent in it, so if you feel like reading more about him before all the bad stuff happened, feel free to go and read A Muggle Thing :-D. **

**Blatant plug over. Enjoy the chapter, which I hope isn't too rambly...**

* * *

The afternoon was a sunny one, and a good portion of the family gradually drifted out into the garden.

Harry was talking to Ron and Hermione about work things, and saying how much the department was missing Ron, while Ginny and Angelina sat close by, idly discussing Quidditch leagues. Jessica had dragged her father and Lily off to hunt for gnomes in the long grass, and Hugo and James were talking to their grandfather a little apart from everyone else, their voices low and eager, as though they were engaging in some sort of conspiracy.

Sirius found himself cornered by Percy Weasley. He knew little about Percy except that he was Molly's father and worked for the Ministry, in the Department for Magical Transportation, but from his brief introduction, he had got a vague impression of a fussy sort of man, with a stern outlook on life.

"Well, it's good to see you getting out and about a bit," Percy said, by way of starting a conversation, "I hear that you got yourself a wand this morning."

Of course, strictly speaking, it was Lily who had got him a wand, but Sirius nodded.

"Yes, that's right."

"We haven't really had a chance to talk," Percy looked closely at him, as though trying to work him out, "But you met my daughter last weekend."

"Er... yes," Sirius agreed, unable to stop himself thinking about how that evening had ended.

"So..." Percy continued, "What are you going to do with yourself, now that you're here?"

Sirius looked alarmed at the question, although it was spoken as a polite enquiry.

"Well... I don't really know, to be honest."

Percy looked disapproving.

"Well, you ought to start thinking about it. I mean it's very good of Harry and Ginny to put you up like this, and I know they're happy to do it, because I think Harry was very fond of you when he was a boy..."

"Did _you _know me then?" Sirius interrupted quickly, not liking either strand of the conversation so far.

Percy, to his surprise, looked uncomfortable.

"Well... not really, no. I mean, I'd already left school and was working for the Ministry by the time you got to know the rest of the family. It was a very busy time, and I never really met you..." He spoke very quickly, and Sirius wondered what the matter was, but Percy was not to be distracted from what he had been going to say, "But really, you can't hang around doing nothing..."

He did _not_ say, "_and living off other people"_ but Sirius felt that it was implied, and his brows came down, but Percy ploughed on.

"It's not healthy," he continued, "Everyone needs a purposeful occupation. You ought to start thinking about a career. What were your plans before you came here?"

Most people did not talk much to Sirius about 'before' very much, but Percy obviously did not share their sensitivities. Sirius laughed bitterly.

"Well, _immediately _before I came, I sort of assumed I was destined for a life as a convict. But before that... well, I never really planned much. I just did whatever came to hand. I had money from my uncle, and the most useful thing I could do was work full time for the Order. I was never trained as an Auror or anything, but I suppose that was the job I was doing. Things are a bit different now there isn't a war on though, aren't they? You can't do that kind of work without the full training and qualifications. And I'm not sure I could face going back to education."

"There are plenty of other jobs though," Percy pointed out, "The Ministry, for example, is an excellent career path for a young person..."

"Don't listen to him," a voice broke in, and Sirius, to his relief, found James grinning at his elbow, "Uncle Percy just wants to lure you into his department and trap you there, doing boring office stuff all day. I know; he tried to do it to me too. He thinks the Ministry's the only place worth working in, and the worrying thing is, he genuinely believes that it's as interesting and worthwhile as he tells you it is..." he grinned irreverently at his uncle, who didn't look amused, "If you're looking for a job, we can find you some much better options than that. No offence or anything, Uncle Percy."

Percy was looking offended anyway, but James ignored him.

"Anyway, don't worry about it now," he went on, "Come with me. There's something we want to show you."

Sirius followed him outside, Percy accompanying them. Arthur Weasley was standing just outside the door, with Rose's younger brother Hugo. They had apparently been waiting for him, and both looked slightly excited.

"Ah, here you are," Arthur beamed at him, "Now, we've got a bit of a surprise for you. It was Hugo's idea..."

"That doesn't sound good," the amused voice of Rose broke in,as she and Lily appeared behind them, Lily having escaped and left Teddy and his daughter to continue the gnome hunt without her, "What the hell are you planning, Hugo?"

"If we told you, it wouldn't be a surprise," Hugo said patiently, "Sirius, you've got to come down to the shed."

"I wouldn't," Rose advised him, "If it's Hugo's idea, it's probably going to end disasterously."

Hugo glared at her.

"Oh, because nothing _you_ do _ever_ ends disasterouly," he retorted, "Not referencing last weekend or anything. But anyway, this isn't going to be a disaster. It's great."

"I think I know what it is," Lily said, with amusement, "It's..."

"Shut up!" her cousin broke in exasperatedly, "Don't you know what a _surprise_ is, Lily? Come on, before another idiot ruins it."

* * *

The shed was not a prepossessing building. It was small and cobwebby with grimy windows, and the door hinges creaked ominously as Hugo opened it.

"Go on. Have a look!" Hugo said, grinning broadly at Sirius. Sirius peered into the darkness.

"What the hell...?"

There was a dark shape inside, covered with what looked like a sheet.

"All yours," Arthur Weasley told him, "Call me a custodian, if you like. It belongs to you, if you still want it."

Percy, who had followed them down, looking curious, sniffed disapprovingly.

"Honestly, Dad," he said, "Does Mum know you've still got that thing?"

Arthur looked uncomfortable.

"Well... I'm sure she does. I've never mentioned it... but she knew when we put it there, and I've never told her it _wasn't_ there..."

Sirius, however, was not listening. Something had clicked in his brain, and a very strange expression had come over his face; almost, Lily thought as she looked at him, awestruck. She herself knew exactly what was in the shed, and she could see that Rose had also cottoned on. It was very strange seeing it there though. Of course, she had seen it often enough in the past. When they had been kids, they had come in here and played on it. She could clearly recall her and Roxy going through a phase when they used to pretend it was a pony, although what Sirius would say if he heard that, she couldn't imagine, she thought with an inward giggle.

But they had grown out of the games, and Sirius Black's motorbike had sat in the shed for years, unused and un-looked-at, except for the odd time when her grandfather came down simply to gaze at it with satisfaction for a while. She herself had not seen it for years. Except, of course, for the time last summer, when she had gone back to 1980, and had ridden from London to Hogwarts on the thing. Weird to think that this machine, which had sat in her grandparents' shed for as long as she could remember, was exactly the same one she had sat behind Sirius on, that November day in 1980. It hadn't occurred to her, at the time, that the motorbike was the same one she had played ponies on as a child. It was a strange thought, and slightly eerie.

The awestruck look was still on Sirius' face as he pulled the dust sheet off the bike, but it disappeared as he ran his hand along the handlebars, and a grin began to replace it.

"Hello, girl," he murmured, "Did you miss me? Somebody's been looking after you, though."

It was true. Arthur Weasley had never risked his wife's wrath enough to actually ride the thing, but he had kept it well cleaned, and the metal work polished.

They watched him from the door as he examined the bike almost reverently, then he looked up, the grin growing wider.

"Look out. I'm going to bring her out."

He slung one leg over the bike, kicked the brake off, and started the engine. It spluttered into life as though it had last been ridden yesterday, and not years before. His watchers moved hastily away from the doorway and he eased the bike out and stopped, leaving the engine running. He grinned round at them, exhiliration in his face. The sound of the engine starting had attracted others from further up the lawn, and quite a large crowd was gathering round.

"Who wants to come for a spin?" he asked, his eyes gleaming.

"Is it even _remotely _safe?" Rose demanded.

"Of course it is," Sirius replied, "Ask Lily. She's been on it," he looked at Lily, "Want another go? Show them how it's done?"

Hermione, who had come down to see what was going on, looked horrified, and Harry too looked faintly disturbed.

"Er... I'm not sure, Lily..." he said, uncertainly.

"I wants a go!" Jessica interrupted loudly, wriggling in her father's arms.

"Well, you can't," Teddy replied firmly, "It's only for grown-ups."

Jessica pouted.

"Ev'ryfing fun's only for g'own-ups. Is Lily goin'?"

"I don't know," Teddy raised his eyebrows at Lily, who was hesitating.

What did she do now? She couldn't refuse... but sharing the bike with him had always seemed such an intimate thing to do... and everyone was watching now, including her father. And Sirius, damn him, was looking at her with a wickedly challening smirk on his face. Well, she wasn't going to fail a challenge, whatever happened, especially not with people like James and Rose looking on.

So she forced a nonchalent expression on her face, and raised her eyebrows.

"Okay, why not?"

"Lily!" Hermione exclaimed, "You can't ride that thing without helmets!"

"Of course we can," Sirius said, "You don't wear a helmet when you ride a broom, do you? It's no more dangerous."

"Oh no?" Hermione retorted grimly, "I'd imagined it would be quite a lot faster than a broom, myself..."

"Oh, come on, Mum," Hugo said impatiently, "I bet it's loads safer than a broom..."

Lily glanced at her father, who was looking resigned, if not exactly pleased. He wouldn't say anything; he couldn't. After all, he had ridden a bloody dragon, when he was younger than she was now! And he wasn't nearly as paranoid about the dangers of flying as Aunt Hermione was - he'd played too much Quidditch in his day. He might not exactly like seeing his daughter take off on the back of a flying motorbike, but he wouldn't object.

With an answering smirk for the one Sirius was sending at her, she moved forwards and seated herself behind him. The others were laughing, and Hugo gave her a whoop of encouragement as she sat down. She grinned round at them. It was horribly reminiscent of the last time she had sat on this bike, but she also realised that she was slightly excited about riding it again. And whatever she did, she had to make sure that nothing showed on her face that would give away exactly how she was feeling about being this close to him.

* * *

He hadn't actually thought she'd do it when he'd issued the challenge. If he'd stopped to think properly though, he realised, he should have known. This was Lily, after all. He kept the grin on his face, though, because none of his true feelings could be allowed to show, and concentrated on riding the bike.

And in fact, after the first unsettling moment when she sat down behind him, and he felt her body against his back, the pure exhiliration at being back on the bike overrode everything. This, at least, had not changed; he still knew how to ride a motorbike, and it still felt as amazing as it had in 1981. He could not resist showing off a little once the bike was in the air, and pulled some stunts that made a few people on the ground shriek. He glanced over his shoulder at Lily.

"Having fun?"

She was laughing, and he could see the answer in her face, but she nodded anyway

"How about you?"

He grinned.

"Feels amazing. I can't believe I've got her back."

They didn't stay up in the air for long, but landed back on the lawn, to cheers from a number of their audience. Lily clambered off, windswept, and a little breathless, and Sirius was mobbed by James, Louis and Hugo, who had plenty of eager questions about the working of the bike. James, indeed, wanted to know if Sirius would teach him to ride it, and then how much it cost to buy one, and how you put the spells on it to make it fly. And Jessica had pulled her father over, and was demanding to be allowed to sit on it.

Lily wandered back to the others, unable to keep the smile off her face.

Rose glanced at her and Lily met her cousin's questioning look with one of wide-eyed innocence. She had no idea how much Rose had guessed, but knowing her, it could be quite a bit. Sure enough, her suspicions were confirmed, as Rose stepped close to her and muttered in her ear:

"Have fun, did you?"

Lily gave her cousin a bland smile.

"Yes, you should give it a try. I'm sure he'd take you up..."

"I daresay he would," Rose said, scowling, "I think I'll pass." Lily was perfectly aware that Rose, to her constant shame, suffered from vertigo. The only thing she disliked more than flying was people referring to the weakness. But she wasn't going to be distracted that easily.

"You looked like you were enjoying a bit more than the flying," she went on.

"I don't know what you mean," said Lily, knowing perfectly well that her face was heating up, and that she couldn't tell lies well enough to fool Jessica, let alone Rose.

Rose gave her a sceptical look.

"Yeah, whatever. But I'm telling you Lil, I don't think that's something you should even be thinking of getting into. I know your usual theory is to have as much fun as you want and screw the consequences, but this is probably the occasion to get some common sense. Messing around with Sirius wouldn't be clever, Lil..."

They had been speaking in whispers, and so far nobody had paid them any attention, but Lily looked around worriedly.

"Shut up, Rosie! Dad'll hear! And don't try and lecture me; you're as bad as James. I'm _not_ messing around with Sirius! I _know_..." she tailed off, suddenly feeling that if she continued, she'd burst into tears, the happy feeling that flying had given her suddenly dissolving. What she could not tell Rose - or anyone else - was the horrible suspicion she had that anything that happened with Sirius would not _be_ 'messing around' - at least not on her part. Which was exactly why nothing could be allowed to happen.

But Rose was looking at her with a different expression, as though she had seen something in Lily's face that she had not been expecting, and Lily wished again that Rosie wasn't so damned perceptive. Rose looked surprised, and her surprise turned to thoughtfulness, and something like pity.

"Right," nothing of that showed in her voice as she spoke evenly, "Well, so long as you know. I didn't mean to sound like James, but I did want to make sure you were thinking properly. Because, you know, you don't always."

They said nothing more for the moment, but the afternoon was spoilt for Lily, and she soon took refuge with Grandma Weasley, who was starting dinner in the kitchen, in an attempt to avoid both Sirius and Rose. Unfortunately, she could see Sirius from the window, and could not stop herself glancing out every now and again to see him cheerfully lifting Jessica onto the bike (without the engine running) and letting her pretend to be driving it, and talking easily to James and Louis. It made it a little difficult to concentrate on Grandma Weasley's conversation, but one piece of information she did manage to take in was that they were expecting Odette Thibodeau for dinner.

"Oh!" she said, startled, when this came up, "I didn't know..."

"Oh, didn't we tell you?" Grandma Weasley beamed, "Yes, they're coming over for the afternoon. I knew Odette, back in the old days, you know, and of course, she was a friend of Sirius. You'd have thought she might find it a bit strange, seeing him now, but she seemed to want to..."

"_They_?" Lily questioned.

"Yes, she's bringing some of her family. I told her to bring the lot, but they couldn't all come. But she wants to introduce them to Sirius, apparently. Or else they want to be introduced; I'm not sure which. They must have heard as many stories about him as you have, if not more..."

"Which ones are coming?" Lily asked curiously. She had met some of Odette's family, but it had been years ago, when she was quite small. Odette's daughter was, she thought, a few years younger than her father, and she had two grandchildren, the older of whom was a year older than Lily. Grandma Weasley, however, did not know who was coming, so she would have to wait and see.

None of this made Lily feel much better, remembering the conversation she had had with Odette in the kitchen at home.

* * *

"Where's Lily gone?" Hugo demanded, as he flung himself down on the grass beside his sister. She glanced up.

"I think she's inside. Why?"

"Just wondered. She disappeared a bit quickly, that's all," he grinned round at Roxy, Fred and Albus, who were also present, "Good idea of mine wasn't it?" He jerked his thumb at Sirius, who was still experimenting with the bike, and talking to James and Louis about it.

"You've had worse," Rose agreed, "Although Mum might not agree with you. She doesn't approve."

"You don't think they'd fund one for me for Christmas, then?" he asked, without much hope.

"No," said Rose definitely, "Dad would, but Mum would have a fit. I think if you want one of those, you're going to have to save up yourself."

"I don't have that sort of money," he said gloomily, "Not just lying around spare. Unlike James. He can probably afford to buy a dozen of the things."

"I doubt it," Fred said with a grin, "Even national Quidditch players don't get paid _that_ much. Although judging from the expression on his face, he might stretch to one."

"I expect he will," Albus lifted his head from the rather weighty medical tomb he was reading, "And I expect he'll crash it repeatedly, and I'll get fairly used to seeing him being brought feet first into St Mungo's."

Roxy giggled.

"Well, it won't be the first time he's been there."

"No, he does have a remarkable talent for inflicting injuries on himself," James' brother agreed, "Just so long as he doesn't kill himself on the thing. Mum'd be a bit upset."

"Seriously though," Hugo said, "Where _is_ Lily? What's she doing inside, when it's so gorgeous out here?"

Rose, Albus and Fred exchanged glances, and Hugo looked from one to the other, puzzled.

"What's going on?"

"I bet I can guess," Roxy said wryly, "She's avoiding him, isn't she? Did something happen?"

"Oh, you've spotted it too?" Rose asked.

"Well, yeah. I do work with her every day," Roxy pointed out, "_Something_ was obviously wrong, and it wasn't just that she was annoyed by all the people staring at her; she's used to attention by now. So I got it out of her one day..."

"She _told_ you?" Rose said.

"Well, not exactly. But she said enough for me to guess the rest. Only I thought it must have blown over - or else they were secretly making a go of it. Because she seemed perfectly happy when they arrived, and she was with him all day..."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Hugo had been growing more and more confused, and finally interrupted.

"Lily fancies Sirius," Roxy told him calmly, before any of the others could head the question off.

"_What_?" Hugo stared round at them, his mouth slightly open, "But... but it's Lily. Lily doesn't fancy people!"

"Of course she does, Hugo," Rose said irritably, "Haven't you noticed the number of boyfriends she's had over the years?"

"Yeah, but she's only ever interested while they're actually going out. And not _that_ interested, even then. She doesn't _fancy_ people, fancy people. She doesn't get _real_ feelings for people, to the point that they actually get her down!"

"That's what I said," Albus put in, "Only it's beginning to look a bit this one _is_ getting her down."

"Bloody hell!" Hugo muttered, then he frowned, "I suppose... he's not interested, then?"

"I don't think he's usually the type to have serious feelings for anyone, any more than Lily is," said Rose, "But Fred got the impression he might not be completely indifferent."

"I got that distinct impression myself," a new voice said beind them. They jumped and looked up, to find three people watching them. Two were a short distance away, looking a little unsure of themselves, but the third had come up to them, and it was she who had spoken.

They stared at her in surprise for a few moments, then Albus recovered.

"Madame Thibodeau! When did you arrive?"

"How many times do I have to tell you folk?" she said irritably, "My name's Odette. It was always ridiculous enough that you didn't know me well enough to call me by it when you were children. Now that you're adults, it's even more ridiculous. We just got here. Apparated to the gate, but nobody noticed, so we came on up. Where are the rest of them?"

Albus glanced up towards the house. James, Louis and Sirius were still on the lawn, but most other people had disappeared.

"Oh... they must be the other side of the house. Or else they've gone inside. We'll go and find them," he closed his book and stood up, "Have you met all this lot?"

Odette looked thoughtfully at them.

"Now... you're Rose, and I met you when you were younger, and you must be Hugo. I don't think I know you two, though."

"I'm Fred," Fred held his hand out.

"And I'm Roxy," Roxy said shyly.

"George's children, am I right?" Odette said, as she shook hands with them, "I think I've seen photographs of you at your aunt and uncle's house. I'm Odette Thibodeau, in case you were wondering."

"Sorry," Albus grinned, "That wasn't a very good introduction on my part. Madame... sorry, Odette, was an old friend of my grandparents on Dad's side. And of Sirius, of course."

"Yes," agreed Odette dryly, "And Sirius, of course. And on this occasion, I've brought some of my family to meet the returned prodigal. I've told them he's not really all that interesting, but they seemed to want to anyway. Albus, you remember my daughter Sophie? And my grandson..."

The other two people had come up behind her; a middle-aged woman who looked very like her mother, and a good-looking young man of around their own age, with dark curly hair and a cheerful grin.

"Of course I do!" Albus said, "Though I can't have been more than ten when we came over to France. I know I hadn't started Hogwarts..." He glanced over his shoulder, "Hey, Sirius," he shouted at the trio gathered around the motorbike. They looked up, and surprise registered as they saw the visitors. Then Sirius recognised the newcomer, grinned, and waved a hand, before heading over the join them. James and Louis followed.

Albus turned back to Sophie and her son.

"Nicolas, isn't it?" he asked.

The young man looked uncertainly at him, and then glanced at his grandmother.

"It is," Odette agreed, "And his English isn't as good as it might be. Although he ought to know enough to recognise his own name."

She spoke rapidly to her grandson in French, who grinned sheepishly.

"He knows far more than he'll admit," she told the others, "He thinks he can't do it, that's the trouble, so he doesn't try. Hullo, Sirius," she said, as the other three came up, "You see, I remembered not to call you Black. How are you doing?" she ran critical eyes over him, "You seem to be flourishing."

Sirius grinned.

"I suppose you could say that," he waved a hand at the bike, "Look what I just got back."

She looked, and groaned.

"Oh Merlin, not that bloody machine! Honestly, anyone would think it was a sentient being, the way you used to go on about it. This is my daughter Sophie, by the way."

"I am pleased to meet you," Sophie's accent was noticeable, but her English was otherwise perfect, "I have heard a great deal about you."

"And before you get the wrong idea, most of it was uncomplimentary," Odette put in, "And this is my grandson, Nicolas, who thinks he doesn't speak English."

"Oh," said Sirius, uncertainly, "Um... nice to meet you. How do you say that in French?"

"_Enchante_, usually," came Louis' amused voice from behind him.

"Indeed," agreed Odette, "Although he does know that much English," she looked at the two others who had come up with Sirius, "Hullo, James. I don't seem to have seen you for a long time, although I've heard great things about your Quidditch career. And I don't think I've met you, although you seem to speak French," she looked enquiringly at Louis.

"Louis Weasley," he offered, "And yes, my mum's French."

"Oh, good," she looked pleased, "There you go, Nicky. You'll have someone you can talk to after all."

Nicolas simply looked confused, but Louis grinned at him, and introduced himself in French, and the other young man's face cleared as he answered.

Sirius was gazing at Sophie and Nicolas wonderingly.

"Wow. You had kids."

"I had one kid," Odette corrected him, "And you needn't sound quite so surprised. Apart from anything, I told you I had a daughter a couple of weeks ago."

"I know. But meeting her's different. It's weird." he looked at Sophie, "Sorry. No offence."

"None taken," she smiled at him, "I think that having children took Maman by surprise herself, non Maman?"

Odette chuckled.

"Well, I couldn't quite believe it had happened until it had, if that's what you mean. And I certainly used to swear I never would when I was at school. I never felt the need to have more than one though."

"D'you only have one grandchild too?" Sirius looked at Nicolas, conversing rapidly in French with Louis, who looked like he was only just managing to keep up.

"No, I have two. Bernadette's only seventeen though, and still at school, which is why she isn't here. I imagine she'll be extremely upset that we've been without her though."

"School? You mean Beauxbatons?" he questioned.

"Yes," Odette sounded a little regretful, "I'd have liked them to go to Hogwarts - they'd have learnt proper English, for one thing - but practically, it made much more sense for them to go to Beauxbatons. Sophie went there too."

Louis broke off from his conversation.

"Hey, you must have known my mum, if you went to Beauxbatons," he said to Sophie, "Fleur Delacour..."

Sophie stared at him.

"Fleur Delacour? You are Fleur Delacour's son? I should have guessed; you are very like her. And I knew that she had married an English wizard. I knew who she was, although I doubt that she will remember me. She was some years older than I; my first year at Beauxbatons was her last. But she had a sister who was a few years below me at Beaxbatons."

"Tante Gabi," Louis said, with a grin, "Mum'll be really pleased to see you, though, whether she remembers you or not. She's always complaining about being surrounded by Hogwarts people..."

They proceeded up towards the house, but Odette dropped back slightly, so that she was walking alongside Rose, Albus, Roxy and Hugo, the others slightly ahead.

"I was right, wasn't I, about who you were talking about when I interrupted?" she asked, very quietly.

Rose glanced up ahead at Sirius.

"I imagine so."

"Him and Lily," Odette went on, following Rose's gaze, "So you think Lily might be starting to have, er... complicated feelings for him?"

Rose looked uncomfortable.

"Well... we don't really know..."

"I thought Lily didn't 'do' complicated feelings?" Odette persisted.

"She doesn't, normally," Albus put in, "But it certainly seems to be complicated this time."

"You can say that again," Odette replied, checking to make sure the others were still sufficiently far ahead for them not to hear what she was saying, "I don't think complicated even begins to describe it. But for what it's worth, I don't think those feelings are entirely unreciprocated. As I said, I got the definite impression that he was interested. Of course, this is Sirius Black, so that doesn't necessarily mean much, but I did wonder..."

"Well, if he likes her too, what's complicated about it?" put in Hugo. They stared at him.

"Well, where should we start?" said Rose sarcastically, "How about the fact that in this time, he ought to be in his late sixties, except that _actually _what he should be in this time is _dead_..."

"But he's not," said Hugo simply, "He's living in this time now, and he isn't in his late sixties. He's just another guy, about our age. What are you saying, that Sirius can't have a girlfriend here because he was born seventy years ago? Bit harsh if he's going to live here forever, isn't it? I mean, I see that going out with Lily might be weird for _him_, because she's his best friend's granddaughter. But I don't see why _we_ should freak out about it. Like I say, he's just another guy. And it's not like they're actually related or anything; at least, no more closely than most witches and wizards."

"I agree," said Roxy, with uncharacteristic firmness, "I think you're all overreacting. Hugo's right. Isn't it time we put the whole time travel thing behind us, and let him live his life? And let Lily live hers, for that matter. If she's starting to be serious about something, isn't that a good thing?"

Rose and Albus looked at each other, unconvinced, while Odette looked from one to the other, a slightly amused expression on her face. It was an interesting idea, and one that hadn't really occurred to her as a possibility. Sirius getting together with James' granddaughter? Bizarre in the extreme, of course... but she remembered her impressions from the previous week. It was worth making some investigations at least...

"The thing is," Hugo went on, "What are we going to do about it?"

Rose groaned.

"We're not going to do anything about it! It's none of our business, Hugo!"

"Of course it is!" he objected, "She's our cousin. And _your_ sister," he added, looking at Albus, "Don't you want her to be happy?"

"I'm not really sure that this would make her happy," Albus said dryly, "Neither of them's exactly known for their ability to commit to relationships."

Rose closed her eyes.

"I can't believe we're even talking about this!"

Albus turned suddenly to Odette.

"What do you think about this? You must know Sirius a lot better than any of us do..."

"Well, I suppose I do," she acknowledged, "Although I don't claim that I ever fully understood him. And it was a long time ago. I don't know what to think, really. I fully agree with Rose about the strangeness of the idea. But then, the whole situation is very strange; we probably need to open our minds a bit more than usual. And as for Black himself, well, I'd advise any girl to be very careful about getting emotionally involved with him. He's not very good at emotional involvement. On the other hand, I've always been of the opinion that it was just a matter of finding the right girl. And I have to say that the girl I envisioned wasn't entirely unlike your Lily. But are you sure about her feelings? When I spoke to her the other week, she seemed very definite about her lack of interest in a serious relationship."

"You spoke to her about it?" Albus looked startled, "Well, I'm not surprised she said that. She always says that, and I think she genuinely believes it. But... well, it's like you said about Sirius. I've always thought that she'd change her mind pretty quickly when the right person came along. I never got as far as imagining what the right person would be like though."

"So... if we were going to set them up...?" said Hugo hopefully.

"We're _not_!" Rose snapped, "Don't be so stupid, Hugo! I thought you'd got over interfering in people's lives!" she looked at Odette, "My little brother fancies himself as a matchmaker."

Odette chuckled.

"So did I, once. It's a dangerous occupation"

Hugo looked injured.

"Hey, I don't just _fancy myself_ as a matchmaker! Look at James. Would he even have a girlfriend if it wasn't for me? My matchmaking works!"

"So did mine," Odette said calmly, "Otherwise Albus there wouldn't be here."

Hugo grinned.

"See, Rosie? Interfering can be a good thing..."

Rose rolled her eyes.

"Whatever. We are _not_ setting Sirius and Lily up. I can't think of a worse idea. Whatever they feel about each other, they're just going to have to get over it, because anything else would be way too complicated. And let's face it; they probably _will_ get over it pretty quickly, knowing the way the two of them are about relationships. We don't even know that Sirius is interested in Lily at all; at least not more than most straight males are vaguely interested in her."

"That's true," Odette said thoughtfully, "But I could probably find out, if you want me to."

"You think he'd talk to you?" Albus said dubiously.

"I'm sure he would. We're old allies, Sirius Black and I. He knows I can see through him."

"Well, that would help," Roxy put in, "At least we'd know then. Because it's obvious that _Lily's_ interested."

Rose stared from one of them to the other.

"You're all mad," she said, incredulously, "You'd have to be completely insane to think this was a good idea..."

The others had gone round the house to find the rest of the family, but Odette, Rose, Albus, Hugo and Roxy had lingered, not wanting their conversation to be overheard. However, Sophie and Nicolas had now been met and greeted, and at that moment, Harry appeared round the corner, clearly coming to see what had become of the stragglers.

"Odette!" he greeted her warmly, "Here you are!" He stopped and looked at them, "What's going on?"

"I was just admiring those lovely tulips in the bed there," Odette said firmly, "A much better display than I've managed to produce."

"Oh," Harry looked surprised, "I didn't realise you were a gardener. You should talk to Ginny. Now come on round with everyone else. Somebody's gone to put the kettle on..."

He disappeared again, but Odette lingered just a moment longer, and looked at four startled faces.

She winked.

"Probably not something Harry needs to think about just now, hm?"


	29. Interfering

**Disclaimer: Still don't own it. Shame, as this is by far the longest and most complete thing I've ever written. But unfortunately, it still belongs to JK Rowling.**

**A/N: This chapter is for arwenjanelilylyra, because it's her BIRTHDAY today! And it still technically is your birthday m'dear, so I _did_ make it in time, even if you don't see it tomorrow because you're too busy celebrating tonight :-D. Anyway, the conversation between Odette and Sirius was a request from her, although it didn't turn out quite as light-hearted as I'd first intended. But there are moments of light relief. And the bit about Louis is also a birthday present, so hope you enjoy it :-)**

**Thanks to Tessia, chiriko1117, arwenjanelilylyra and Aunt Mo for reviews. Reviews make me very happy, and still earn brownies, so keep them coming :-)**

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"So..."

Sirius looked up warily. He recognised that tone of voice. It hadn't changed in forty seven years.

"So what?"

"I said you looked as though you were flourishing," Odette took a seat beside him, "And physically, you do. You look considerably better than the gaunt-looking creature you were the other week. Still a bit thin, but much more like the Sirius Black I remember. How are you doing mentally?"

Sirius looked at her.

"If I said 'fine', would that be a good enough answer?" he asked hopefully.

"No," she said firmly.

He sighed.

"No, I thought it might not be."

"Well?" she asked, after a short silence.

"What did you do?" he asked abruptly, "After they died? I mean, Lily was your best friend, and James... well, James was practically your cousin. It must have been just as bad for you..."

"Yes," she said softly, "It was a bad time. But I had to hold it together. I had a job to do. Just because Voldemort had gone, that didn't mean the war was over. We'd won, but there were a lot of Death Eaters still prepared to fight. I had to keep going. Claude - that's my husband, although he was just a boyfriend then - saw me through the worst of it. It helped, having him there. But I've had a long time to do my grieving and move on. I can look back at the happy times now, and remember those instead."

"You lost Farrall as well."

"Yes," she said again, "Evie was killed capturing a group of Death Eaters not long after Sophie was born. It was the way she'd have wanted to go though. I don't think she'd ever planned on surviving the war, you know. She didn't want to grow old, not after what had happened..."

He nodded soberly.

"You said you could remember the good times without it hurting. I wish I could do that, but I can't."

"You will be able to," she told him, "Hard though it may be for both of us to realise, I'm quite a lot older than you these days. So take it from an old woman who's lived a very full life - it gets easier. You don't forget, and you never stop missing them, but it stops hurting quite so much."

He gave a half-hearted smile.

"Well, I wish it would hurry up and do it."

She smiled back, more gently than was usual for her.

"That's the trouble with you, Black. You were always too impatient."

"Look who's talking," he retorted, his voice returning to something more like its normal tones.

"Oh, I've learnt plenty of patience these days. I'm not quite the hot-headed twenty-one-year-old I was."

He grinned.

"D'you remember that time when we were trapped in that cupboard under the stairs in the Death Eater house, and we knew they were looking for us, and would find us in the end, but we couldn't see where they were, or what the hell they were doing? And you said you couldn't stand just waiting for them to get to us, and blasted the stairs away to draw attention to us?"

"Vividly," she said, grimly, "I almost got us killed. Your language was colourful on the matter. Thank you for reminding me how stupid I was at nineteen."

"I don't know," he said thoughtfully, "We _weren't_ killed, were we? We fought our way out. And I think we _would_ have been killed if we'd waited for them to find us. I saw the funny side of it afterwards. It just wasn't easy to see when you've just spent two hours trapped in a Death Eater's house and then barely escaped with your life."

"Yes, you did get extraordinarily uptight in that cupboard," she agreed, "I think it was _your _jitters that got to me most, actually. That was the first time I'd realised just how claustrophobic you are. Given how much time you spent in broom cupboards at school, it had never occurred to me that you might be..."

"I'm _not_ claustrophic," he said quickly, "It's not the _size_ of the space that matters; it's being trapped in it that gets to me. And do we have to have this conversation?"

Odette glanced at him.

"Not if you'd rather we didn't," she said calmly, "We can talk about something else instead. How about..." she let her eyes wander round the garden, "Lily Potter?"

The reaction she got was fairly satisfying, if short lived. He turned brick-red, and gaped at her in horror, but only for a moment before he had himself under control again.

"What about her?" he asked.

"Well... she's a pretty girl, isn't she?"

"I s'pose," he agreed, "Where's this going?"

"I think you know where it's going. I'm not blind. I've seen the way you look at her. And the way you flirt with her."

"I flirt with _everyone_, Irvine," he pointed out, not even realising that he had gone back to using her surname, "Merlin, I even tried it with you, once. It doesn't mean anything. You make it sound like I'm trying to seduce her or something. It's not like that."

"Isn't it?" she asked, "What is it like then?"

He stared wordlessly at her.

"All right," she continued, when he didn't reply, "I'll tell you what it _looks_ like, shall I? To me, that is; I'm not speaking for anyone else.

"First of all, you're not acting like yourself when you're around her. I mean, I'm perfectly aware that you'd flirt with a bar of soap if you couldn't find a better option. But the point is that you're _not_ flirting with her. Not the way I've seen you do it with other girls. You start to, and then you stop. Or you do say something, and then suddenly look unaccountable serious, as if you wish you hadn't opened your mouth. And you can't keep your eyes away from her. You don't look at her constantly, but you keep drifting back to her... Merlin, Sirius, you're looking at her now!"

He started guiltily, and turned back to Odette, his cheeks red.

"Well, we were talking about her," he mumbled.

Odette looked sceptical.

"Thing is, I don't think I've ever seen you watch a girl that way," she went on, "I mean, I've seen you eye up pretty girls in passing plenty of times. Casual attraction is one thing. This is something different, isn't it? Because I always got the impression that one of them was as good as another when it came down to it. I certainly never noticed you pining after one particular girl."

"I'm not _pining_ after anyone!" he broke in, looking decidedly uncomfortable, "And I don't like this conversation either..."

"Tough," she went on mercilessly, "Time to face facts, Black. I know you slept with her..."

He started, and stared at her.

"_What_? How did you...? I mean, what the hell are you on about?"

"I worked it out," she replied, ignoring his correction to what he had been going to say, "And then I asked her, and she told me. So there's not a lot of point in telling me you didn't, unless you want to tell me she's a liar..."

"Oh," he stared at the floor for a moment, then looked up at her, "Look, Irvine... Odette... whatever. No offence, but I didn't even used to tell you this sort of stuff when we were the same age..."

"Yes you did," she contradicted him, "You told everyone. We all knew far more about your sex life than any of us wanted to. Of course, I can understand why you didn't broadcast this one..."

"Yeah, whatever," he interrupted hastily, "I don't mean about sex. I'll admit that, if that's what you want. I slept with her, for one night back in 1980. I mean... about... other stuff..." he trailed off lamely.

She looked shrewdly at him.

"Like real, deep feelings? You're right; you never did let me past the mask, did you? But I've seen it slip on the odd occasion. I know you've _got _deep feelings behind there, Sirius. How many people _have_ you let past it? James, of course, but James is gone..."

His eyes gave him away without him meaning to; they slid involuntarily back to Lily. He retrieved his gaze as soon as he realised where it had gone, but it was too late.

Odette was staring at him, her expression uncomortably understanding.

"Her?" she asked, softly, "Really?"

He shrugged.

"Well, that tells me something, and if it doesn't tell you the same thing, you're an idiot, Black," she went on.

"Oh, hell," he gave up suddenly, "What's the point? What do you want me to say? "Yes, I've fallen head over heels for my best friend's granddaughter"? It's no good, anyway. It wouldn't work, even if she wanted it to, and she's not interested in a relationship," he looked at her and laughed harshly, "Ironic, isn't it? I finally find a girl I can't stop thinking about, and she's not only out of bounds, but is also about as interested in commitment as I always was. Which is not at all."

"I don't know," Odette said evenly, "I'll agree with you on the second part, although I did predict it, but I would say that you falling for a girl who was out of bounds was more typical than ironic. You always did enjoy having to break rules to get what you want."

"There are some rules that can't be broken," he said softly.

She looked at him.

"You're not thinking of the people in this time at all, are you? You're thinking about James. Those are the only rules you'd never break, aren't they? It's because she's his granddaughter," she leaned forward and looked him in the eye, "Listen to me, Sirius. As hard as this may be for you to hear, James is dead. And you are here, alive. In 2028. That was never allowed for in your bloody rules; I don't know what they were, but I don't imagine for a moment that they included not getting involved with each others' grandchildren. You're trying to imagine what James would think of a situation he never thought of, and I'm telling you now, it's pointless. You've made your choice; your life is here now, and there's no point thinking in terms of generations. They don't work any more. She's a girl a year or two younger than you. Would you be feeling like this if she was James' little sister, which is the closest comparison I can come up with?"

Sirius stared at her for a moment, and she gave him time to think.

"I don't know," he said, at last, "I'd have had to talk to him first. Only I can't..."

"No," Odette agreed sadly, "You can't. All you can do is imagine what he'd have said. And I can do that as well as you can, because I knew James when he was still in nappies. He'd have done a lot of swearing, and probably hexed you into the bargain. And then he'd have come round to it, and decided that the happiness of two people he cared about was more important than any ridiculous squeamishness on his part. And then he'd have spent the next six months teasing you about it."

There was another silence.

"And you know," she said wryly, as an afterthought, "James may not be here to do it himself, but his son is, and his grandsons too. I think you can assume that between them they probably represent James' opinions on the subject quite well."

"They'd kill me," Sirius said woodenly, "And anyway, there's no point. You're forgetting the most important thing; Lily isn't interested."

"I wouldn't count on that," Odette said, "And they might not be too pleased, but I doubt that they'd actually murder you. What I really want to know is, just how serious are you? And if you make any stupid puns right now, I'll save them the trouble anyway, and murder you myself. But I know what you're like. You've never been in a committed relationship in your life. You don't take them seriously, and you get bored in a matter of weeks. Is that what's going to happen here? Because if it is, I think Lily's family _might_ just kill you, and I wouldn't blame them."

"I don't know," he muttered, after a pause, "It's different... _she's_ different. She's not like any other girl I've met..."

"No," Odette agreed, "She's like _you_. Except that I think that she's possibly feeling more seriously about you than she has done before..."

The look in his eyes when she said that would have confirmed her suspicions, if she had still had doubts. But then it faded to a look of desperation.

"Even if you're right," he said, "What can I do about it? It's all impossible."

She sighed.

"I can't tell you what to do. I don't know what you feel about her or what she feels about you. But if she really _is_ more than a casual attraction... if you really do have genuine, deep feelings for her... you can't let that slip by, Sirius. Not because you're worried about the ethics of being with a girl born forty five years after you, and certainly not because you're worried about what your best friend _might_ have thought about it, _if_ he'd been alive to know about it. If you've fallen for her, you'd better do something about it."

He was staring at her.

"D'you really think that?" he asked at last, and he sounded more unsure of himself than she thought she's ever heard him sound before.

She sighed.

"For what it's worth, yes. But you never took my advice before, so I don't see why you should start now."

He laughed slightly.

"You've never lost your liking for trying to sort out other people's lives, have you? Remember your attempts to get James and Lily together?"

She too laughed.

"Yes, I was remembering them earlier, talking to some of the others. Although I would point out that that wasn't just me. You played your part in that one as well."

"Yes, but it was your idea."

"And was it a good one or not?" she demanded, "Take note, Sirius. My ideas generally make sense. Now," she looked around, "What's happened to that family of mine? Sophie's alright, but I've abandonded Nicolas in a sea of foreigners... Oh, it's all right. He's still with that cousin of theirs. What's his name? Louis? I'm glad he's here, although I hope he doesn't mind taking on my grandson. Nicky can't really talk to any of the rest of you, and it looks like Louis' got a bit stuck with him..."

Sirius followed her gaze to where Louis and Nicky were deep in conversation, the others having drifted off.

"I doubt if he minds," he said, looking thoughtfully at some of the body language Louis was showing, "But... er, there's something Nicolas should maybe know. Louis's gay..."

"Oh!" Odette sounded surprised, and looked over at her grandson with amusement, "Really? That's very interesting. I had no idea. I wouldn't worry about it though.

"So's Nicky."

* * *

It was after dinner when Albus felt a hand on his arm, and looked round to find Odette close beside him.

"Thought you'd like to know," she said quietly, "The answer's yes, I was right. He's got it badly. And I think it's serious."

"Oh," Albus stared blankly at her, "Well, that... makes things interesting."

"You could say that," she agreed.

He groaned suddenly.

"Oh, hell. What a mess. Why couldn't they just have kept things platonic?"

"I doubt if either of them intended this to happen. But you know, Albus, if they _do_ decide that they want to be together, I don't think that you, or me, or the rest of your family, or anyone else, has the right to stand between them. Do you?"

"I suppose not," Albus sighed, "Although I bet James'll try his best to. And I can't see Dad being too happy either. But I don't know what to do about it."

"I'm not sure that there's anything you should do about it," said Odette gently, "Except let things take their course, and be there if Lily needs you. Because the rest of your family might not be quite as open minded. Although..." she suddenly smiled mischievously, "I did tell Sirius that in my opinion, he ought to make a move..."

"You're joking?" Albus stared at her in horror.

"No, I'm not," she said, firmly, "What would you like them to do? Say nothing, and carry on making themselves and each other miserable over it, and proably regret it for the rest of their lives?"

"Yes, well, that's another thing, isn't it?" said Albus grimly, "The rest of Sirius' life isn't going to be all that long, is it? He has to go back in twelve years, and we all know what happens to him in the end..."

"Yes," she agreed, "We do, and so does your sister. She may not have much sense, but don't credit her with no brain at all. I'm quite sure she's thought of all that, and a lot more. If she gets involved with Sirius, she's risking a lot of pain. But she knows that. She has to choose whether or not it's worth it, and nobody can make that choice for her, or has the right to try."

"I suppose you're right," he said, heavily, "Although I hope you're right about her thinking it through. Lily's not always very good at thinking about things until it's too late. But I suppose there's nothing more we can do about it, really..."

"No, there's not," she said, "But I tell you what you _can _do..."

He looked expectantly at her, and she grinned.

"You can tell your cousin to stop seducing my grandson!"

"_What_?" Albus looked wildly around and groaned, "Oh, bloody hell! What's he playing at? Does... er, does Nicky _know_?"

"That Louis' gay?" she asked calmly, "No, not unless Louis' told him in the last few hours, while they've been having their cosy and rather lengthy chat. The question is whether Louis has realised that _Nicky's _gay, and therefore knows exactly what he's doing. Because the Veela blood may be diluted, but it's still there, and Nicky is younger than Louis by at least two years, and is also remarkably naive..."

Albus stared at his cousin for a few moments, eyes narrowed, and then turned back to Odette.

"Louis' not Sirius," he told her, "Or James, or even Lily. People don't tend to get hurt quite so much around Louis; he thinks a bit more than they do, and he 's actually quite shy when it comes to relationships. But I'll go and interrupt them, if that's you want."

He began to head towards them, and then thought of something, and turned back, grinning at her.

"Although, after all your talk about people being adults and looking after their own lives, this is a bit hypocritical, isn't it? Seems like it's a bit different when it comes to _your_ family..."

And he disappeared before she could reply.


	30. A Night to Remember

**Disclaimer: I don't own JK Rowling's characters or world.**

**A/N: Thanks once again to arwenjanelilylyra, Aunt Mo, Lady Drama and hushpuppy22 for the reviews. Apologies to hushpuppy22 - there still isn't a whole lot of Sirius/Lily interaction in this one, but I have to stick to the plot! I hope to make up for it in the next chapter...**

**You almost got a much shorter chapter than this, as I was very tempted to leave it on the cliffhanger in around the middle. But I decided on a different cliffhanger instead.**

**Enjoy!**

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* * *

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"Hey, Sirius," James caught up with him as people were saying their goodbyes after the excellent dinner Grandma Weasley had provided, "There's a bunch of us going out tonight. Want to come?"

Sirius looked at him, slightly surprised, but pleased. It was the first time James had invited him to anything sociable, and he found that he could contemplate the idea without feeling that it would only remind him unbearably of the first James. He had mixed feelings about this (he was very far from forgetting about his old friends, but he did not want to seem to be replacing them either) but on the whole, it was a relief, so he grinned.

"Er, yeah, sounds good. Who's a bunch of you?"

"Oh, me, Louis, some of our friends from school - don't worry, I'm not inviting you on a Quidditch team social or anything. You'll like the others," James grinned reassuringly.

Sirius had been more worried that Lily might be forming one of the group. After the conversation with Odette, everything felt a lot more real and dangerous, and he wasn't sure he could get through an evening at a bar wth Lily without doing something stupid. But then, when he thought about it, he remembered that Lily was already going out that night, with some friends of her own. She had recieved the invitation by owl that morning, just as they were about to leave for Diagon Alley, and hadn't seemed very enthusiastic about it, which Sirius had thought was odd; the Lily he thought he knew quite liked going out. But she had accepted anyway.

"Lily's going out too," James went on, almost as though he had read Sirius' mind, "With Meri and some of the other girls. We might run into her; we tend to end up in the same places."

Sirius almost groaned at that, but it wasn't as bad as it might have been. At least they wouldn't be spending the whole evening together, and they might not see her at all.

And he hadn't spent an evening out for a very long time, and it was a huge relief to get back to doing something semi-normal.

* * *

They started the evening at James' flat. It was the first time Sirius had seen it, and it reflected James' personality very well. Sirius, when he had had his own flat, had decorated it ostentatiously with Gryffindor colours. At the time, it had been a whim; he hadn't wanted simple, white walls, so he had gone for the brightest colours he could find. Afterwards, he had realised that he had done exactly the same to his bedroom at his parents' house, when he had been thirteen years old, and he suspected that subconsciously, it was for the same reason, and that that reason wasn't simply a liking for ostentation. Growing up in the Black house, he had always felt the need to prove himself a proud Gryffindor, as different as possible from the rest of them, and the tendency had apparently become ingrained.

James, though, had never felt the need to prove himself a Gryffindor. And he obviously felt that time spent thinking about interior decorating was time wasted. The furniture was mismatched and arranged somewhat haphazardly (James obviously didn't mind having to climb over the back of the sofa to reach the only bookshelf, for example) but the chairs were extremely comfortable, and the fridge was in the lounge, rather than the kitchen, which Sirius thought was such a good idea that he wasn't sure why he hadn't thought of it himself. There was also a strange piece of furniture that the chairs seemed to be arranged around; it was flat and rectangular, made of metal and glass, and upended on one of the longer sides so that the flat face was positioned towards the chairs. Sirius wondered what it was for.

There was various Quidditch memorabilia lying about, and a rather battered-looking poster of a team called the Barnstaple Bears on the wall. There was also a photograph sitting on a shelf, of James with his arm round a pretty girl who laughed directly into the camera. Sirius recognised her vaguely from the previous weekend as James' girlfriend; she had been hanging around when they had arrived back in 2028, but Sirius could not recall being introduced to her, and she seemed to have disappeared fairly quickly. He couldn't help feeling that it was slightly strange that that was all he had seen of her, if she and James were serious together (and the fact that he kept a framed photograph of her in his lounge suggested that they were).

"Want a drink?" James asked him, as he looked around with interest, "I've got..." he opened the fridge, gazed inside, and then opened a cupboard beside it as well, "pretty much everything. Magical and non-Magical. What do you want?"

Sirius accepted a beer (although he had once scoffed at Muggle drinks to Lily, he had discovered a remarkable taste for Muggle beer the previous weekend) and sat down. Louis arrived a few minutes later, and after him, two girls Sirius had never met before. James introduced them as Fenella Belby and Annabelle Carson, and Sirius eyed them with the vague interest with which he always eyed girls he was introduced to. Fenella was small and neat, with smooth, light brown hair, and Annabelle was taller, with slightly wild blonde curls and a sprinkling of freckles over her nose. "Hey!" Annabelle greeted him enthusiastically, as they were introduced, "That's great that you could come! We've been trying to get James to invite you out with us ever since you go here, but he kept saying you were still recovering or something..."

"Oh!" Sirius was slightly startled at this, "Well... yeah, I suppose I was for a bit. I'm fine now, though."

"What are you drinking, girls?" James demanded.

"Oh..." Annabelle wrinkled her nose, "I thought we were going somewhere..."

"Well, we are," he replied, "But we're still waiting for Adam, aren't we? Time for a quick one. Where _is_ Adam, by the way?"

"How should I know?" she asked blankly. Fenella rolled her eyes.

"Well, he's _your_ twin brother!" she looked at Sirius, "Are you sure you're prepared for a night out on the town with this lot? It tends to get messy, because I'm the only one of them with any sense..."

"Hoi!" Louis protested at this, "What about me?"

Fenella looked pityingly at him.

"Louis, last time we went out, you got thrown out of the club, and then vomited in the gutter."

"Oh, yeah," he grimaced reminiscently, "But that was Jamie's fault..."

"Most things are, at least partly," Fenella agreed, "But..."

"Hey! D'you want a drink or not?" James demanded indignantly, "Anyway, it was nobody's fault but his own..."

They were interrupted by the arrival of Annabelle's twin brother, Adam, whom Sirius would never have guessed was even related to her; he was smallish, with dark hair and skin that was almost olive, and certainly didn't have freckles. He grinned at Sirius after the usual introduction.

"Well, ready to have some twenty-first century style fun?"

Sirius grinned back.

"You're going to have to work hard if it's going to live up to 1981-style fun..."

"You haven't seen anything yet," James scoffed. Fenella looked thoughtful.

"D'you think it's changed that much? I mean, the music's different, I suppose. What did you used to listen to?"

Sirius found himself talking about the music of the late 1970s and early 80s, both Muggle and Wizarding (he had listened to both) to an interested audience. They had heard of a lot of the bands he named, and even claimed to like some of them, but some were completely unknown. He found it a surreal experience. He had begun to get used to being in the future, but talking about the world he had left behind brought it back to him just how far he had come. It made him a bit homesick, but he also found that it was quite fun to educate them, and to be educated, in turn, about the music of the 2020s.

They were a nice crowd. Similar enough to the Marauders for him to feel at home with them, but different enough that it didn't just remind him unbearably of James and Remus and even - although the memory was always accompanied by a surge of fury - Peter. The girls, he was relieved to find, were the sensible kind, who didn't simply fling themselves at an attractive man. Annabelle - or Annie, as the others called her - was happy to flirt, but in a comfortable, friendly way that they both knew wasn't going anywhere. Fenella reminded him more of people like Odette Irvine and Lily Evans, and treated him exactly as she treated the others, which did not vary between gender. And none of them seemed to be unduly overwhelmed by the fact that he was a time traveller. It made them easy to talk to, and he found himself slipping comfortably into old ways. These were people he felt at ease with; people, he thought hopefully, whom he could be friends with.

Once they had all finished their drinks, they made their way out into the London streets, filled with people headed in the same direction as them. James' house was not in a Wizarding district, but it was close to one, and it was only a walk to a small, old and rather seedy looking little pub.

"It may not look like much," James told Sirius, "But we always start here. They do the cheapest Firewhisky in London..."

Sirius looked up at the old sign, creaking slightly in the wind, which announced the name simply as 'The Bowtruckle,' and grinned.

"I know. They always did. And it doesn't look like they've painted their sign in fifty years, either."

The others laughed delightedly.

"You used to come here?" Louis asked, grinning.

"Of course. All the time. It does the cheapest Firewhisky in London, after all."

For a moment, stepping inside, Sirius caught his breath. The dim interior; the musty smell of old beer and the faint, permeating scent of tobacco; the red upholstery on the seats and the beer rings on the tables and the small groups of witches and wizards, crammed together in the small space, took him straight back, for a moment, to those other times. He could almost see Remus, sprawled in the corner with his feet on a chair, pretending to be half asleep while James, his hair on end and animation in every fibre of his body, talked excitedly about Quidditch, or the Order of the Pheonix, or Lily Evans, and Peter blinked adoringly at his hero, nodding enthusiastically, and lauhing uproariously at the jokes.

But they were not there, of course, and it only lasted a moment before the cheerful voices of the others broke in on him and he shook himself back to present reality. They had not noticed his momentary pause, except for Fenella, who looked thoughtfully at him, but said nothing, and they proceeded to the bar to order.

He had already brought up the issue of his lack of money with James, and James had promptly offered to buy him drinks. Sirius had been reluctant to accept, but James had insisted, and told him that he could pay it back by offering lessons in riding a motorbike.

"So, Annie," James said, as they sat down, "How's life as a singleton?"

Annabelle grimaced at him.

"Did anyone ever tell you that it's a tad insensitive to ask someone that when they've just broken up with their boyfriend?"

"It was two months ago!" James protested, "And _you_ broke up with _him_, because you said there was nothing left in the relationship any more. You said you _wanted_ to be single for a bit!"

She laughed.

"Okay. You're still a tactless bastard, but I'll let you off. And I'm quite enjoying it, thank you. And that _doesn't_ mean flinging myself from one one-night-stand to the next. It's just nice to be independent for a change. I want to go to New Zealand, I think. Although I did get talking to a _lovely_ guy the other day, who I always see in the canteen at work... Good-looking, beautiful eyes, charming, interesting... turned out he was gay though, so that didn't come to anything," she looked thoughtfully at Louis, "I could introduce you to him, though, Lou, if you're interested?"

"Nah, Louis' only interested in French boys, aren't you, Lou?" James grinned wickedly at his cousin.

"French?" Fenella raised her eyebrows at Louis, who looked very uncomfortable, "What French boys? Something you haven't told us, Louis?"

"No," Louis insisted, "James is making things up, as usual..."

"I'm not making things up!" James protested, "Ask Sirius. We were round at the grandparents' for dinner today, and they had an old family friend over from France..." he did not mention exactly _whose_ old friend she was, for which Sirius was grateful, "And she had her family with her, and Louis got _very_ cosy with her grandson... Don't deny it, Louis, Sirius'll back me up!"

Louis scowled at him.

"He didnt speak English, and I speak French. I was the only person he could speak to, except his own family and my mum and sisters. Of course we talked. It wasn't like that."

"Of course not," James smirked, "Not like that at all. Nothing in it, I'm sure..."

"But is he gay?" Annabelle asked, puzzled.

"I didn't ask," said Louis, sourly, "But I doubt it. Why should he be?"

James howled with laughter at this, but didn't seem as though he was going to answer the question. Sirius grinned.

"I wouldn't have said it was a matter of _should_. According to his grandmother, he _is_."

Louis stared at him, his jaw dropping slightly.

"You're joking?" he said, at last.

"Nope," Sirius told him, "And I'm pretty sure she wasn't either."

"You didn't know?" James had stopped laughing enough to contribute, "Change things a bit, does it?"

"Of course not," Louis said, unconvincingly.

James grinned annoyingly, but changed the subject to Quidditch, to Louis' evident relief.

Some time later, they all spilled out of the pub. None of them were exactly drunk, but they had reached the stage when voices and laughter had become a little louder, and jokes slightly funnier. Sirius was annoyed to find that a couple of months of near abstinence had left his tolerance level considerably lower. He would call himself drunk at all, but he could definitely feel it going to his head, although he hadn't had much. He wouldn't even have noticed that much in the old days.

They were headed, apparently, for a much more fashionable place in a different part of town. James, who had cheerfully suggested it, seemed to have forgotten that Sirius had told him that he was not very good at apparating, but Louis grinned at him when none of the others were watching, obviously having seen his slightly panicked expression.

"Don't worry," he muttered, grabbing Sirius' arm, as James and the others disapparated with loud cracks, "Come with me."

They disapparated, and appeared beside the others, who had apparently noticed nothing unusual. Louis had let go of his arm as soon as they were safely there, and Sirius was relieved. The failing wasn't something he liked to admit to. He should really make another effort to learn, he thought to himself. It couldn't be _that_ difficult. Even Peter Pettigrew had mastered it eventually.

"Come on!" James headed for the door of a posh-looking bar called Sickle Moon that certainly hadn't been around in the 1980s. It was all glass and chrome and grey and white decor, with scarlet cushions on the black leather sofas.

"It's not as expensive as it looks," Fenella told him, as they entered, "And it's just about the most fashionable place in Wizarding London at the moment, so it's the place you meet _everyone_. Which is why James likes it so much."

It was certainly busy. It wasn't entirely Sirius' sort of place (he preferred shadier, less well-heeled venues) but there was plenty going on. And plenty of attractive young women in short dresses and high heels, which was always a plus.

James had immediately been hailed by a couple of other young men, and several people were staring at the roup. Partly at Sirius, and partly, Sirius noted with amusement, at James. It had not really sunk in for him until the Quidditch match that day that James must be quite a famous person in his own right, quite apart from being the son of Harry Potter. He was, as had become obvious at the match, the young star of the national team. It was no wonder than people stared, and it was a bit of a relief, not to be the _only_ focus of people's attention.

Not that they had _stopped _paying him attention, he thought with resignation, as a couple of drunk young woman pressed up close to him and tried to engage him in conversation. For a moment, he wondered at himself; the old Sirius would have been pleased at this sort of attention, and responded warmly to it. Had he really changed so much? No, he decided. It was not that he had changed. It was only that whenever a girl started to come on to him, all he could think of was Lily.

Which would have been a ridiculous idea to the old Sirius, so maybe he had changed after all. He pushed the thought away, and turned firmly to talk to Louis and the others.

His enjoyment of the evening, however, was about to be shattered.

"Um, James..." Annabelle leaned over to her friend suddenly, "Don't look now, but your sister's over there..."

James, of course, looked immediately, and scowled.

"Bloody hell!"

Involuntarily, Sirius also turned his head and looked. Then wished he hadn't, as something strange seemed to happen to his breathing.

Lily was sitting on one of the black leather seats, a discarded drink on the glass table in front of her, her lips locked to those of a blonde young man, apparently oblivious to anything going on around them.

He had always known, really, that Odette's opinion on the matter was too unbelievable to be true. That Lily would be not interested in him in any serious way, and that even if she might have been, under the circumstances, she would never risk it. It had been a pleasant dream, but no more than that. He wasn't made for settling down, whatever pleasant dreams he might have; he had known that, really, for a long time.

That knowledge didn't stop it feeling as if the fragile world he had begun to build up around himself in the past days had just come crashing down.

* * *

Lily had started the evening determined to enjoy herself. She was going to put this stupid thing she had for Sirius to rest once and for all. It was a crush, that was all, she told herself, knowing at the back of her mind, that that probably wasn't entirely true.

But it _had_ to be, for the sake of her sanity, so she pushed that knowledge away. She wasn't the kind of person who got their heart broken, she had told Odette Thibodeau, and it was true. She never had been, and she wasn't about to start now. She must move on and forget about it, because it was clear that, even discounting all the complications, he did not feel the same way. If she had not been Lily Potter, he might have enjoyed having a bit of fun with her (she had certainly got that impression), but as it was, that was clearly out of the question. So what was going to happen was exactly nothing. She had to start thinking of him as another brother, that was all.

The complete impossibility of that idea was one that she refused to acknowledge.

So she made a big effort to join in enthusiastically with their preparations to go out, and downed half a bottle of wine in a remarkably short space of time, before they'd even left Claire's.

"Lily's back to normal, isn't she?" Claire remarked to Meri. Meri, who knew Lily better, eyed the red-haired girl thoughtfully.

"Hm. I s'pose."

In reality, she thought, Lily was far from back to normal. She was pretending hard, and doing a fairly good job of it; good enough to fool Claire anyway. Not good enough to fool Meri, who had been Lily's best friend since their first year at Hogwarts. She could hear the false note in Lily's laugh, and see beyong the brittle cheerfulness in her eyes. Yes, she was pretending well - possibly even well enough to fool _herself_ - but Meri was not convinced, and she was more worried than ever.

Lily was also drinking more than Meri thought was sensible. She didn't stop after the half bottle of wine, but went on drinking copiously as the evening progressed. Of course, Lily had never exactly held back on the alcohol, but still...

For her part, Lily was finding that drinking numbed everything perfectly. This was exactly what she had needed to take her mind off uncomfortable things. Last week, she had gone about it all wrong. She had started the evening depressed, had hardly drunk anything, and, after rejecting the hot man in the bar, had ended up feeling worse than she had at the beginning. Tonight, she threw herself into it, and found that the distraction was working.

She had decided that she would not be so stupid as to reject another man's advances, if he seemed all right. That had been her mistake on Tuesday. It was probably all she needed; a quick reminder that there were plenty of other men out there, and she most certainly did not need Sirius Black.

So she flirted outrageously with any man who came her way and Meri watched her with increasing concern. This wasn't like Lily, any more than the behaviour on Tuesday had been. She would always flirt, but always in a way that made you think she was doing it almost unconsciously; which, Meri knew, she often was. She never made herself seem _desperate_ in the way she was now.

By the time they got to the Sickle Moon, Lily knew she was drunk, and she didn't care. She was giggling wildly at anything and everything, because it was such a relief not to be miserable, that everything was funny. Nothing seemed as bad as it had when she was sober. She could do this. She could get over him.

No problem.

So when Seb Graves came and sat beside her, she gave him her full attention (as far as she could, because she was having some difficulties in focussing properly on him; and her drink was taking up some of her attention too, because Meri had fetched it for her, and she thought it might not contain as much alcohol as she'd asked for; but other than that, she was concentrating on him entirely).

Seb had been a friend of hers; he had been in Rose and Albus' year, but he had been on the Quidditch team with her. He hadn't made much secret of the fact that he fancied her in those days, and last year, she had slept with him a couple of times. It hadn't exactly been earth shattering, because really she didn't fancy him that much, but right now, she didn't care. She had to prove to herself that she could still play this game; that Sirius Black was a passing phase, just like all the others, and that he did not have the power to make her uninterested in anyone else...

She didn't really notice Seb leaning in for the kiss until he was already there, but she responded eagerly. For a moment, it felt like it always did, and the usual warm rushing feeling was mingled with relief and triumph.

Then - and perhaps Meri had slipped something like a sobering solution in that drink, because she suddenly didn't feel as drunk - reality came sliding back in, in the shape of Sirius' face appearing suddenly and clearly in her mind's eye, and Lily knew, in that moment, that she could _not_ play this game any more.

And she also knew - although she might have already known it, underneath - that whatever he was, Sirius Black was not a passing phase.

* * *

Sirius turned away, feeling suddenly slightly nauseous. But he couldn't show it. That realisation came quickly, and, with a huge effort, he brought himself under control. James, certainly, hadn't noticed; he was trying to see what Lily was doing, despite the group of people who had walked across and were standing directly in his line of vision. Fenella had grabbed his arm firmly, and stopped him from wading straight in, and was now arguing violently with him about whether or not he had the right to interupt the pair.

Only Louis had spotted Sirius' reaction, and Sirius found that the other young man's eyes were fixed on him with surprise, realisation and sympathy. He said nothing at all however, and for the second time that night, Sirius was grateful that Louis Weasley knew the meaning of discretion.

With the group standing in their way, none of them saw Lily pull away from the kiss, her face registering horror and remorse. None of them heard her whisper a mortified apology to Seb Graves, and make her escape hastily, if not exactly gracefully.

And they never got a chance to see a confused Seb left alone at the table, two half-finished drinks in front of him, staring after her - because at that moment, all hell broke loose.


	31. The Sickle Moon

**Disclaimer: I own nothing you recognise from JK Rowling's books.**

**A/N: Well, I may have been both evil and cruel, as my reviewers decribed me after the cliffhanger I ended with last time, but not evil and cruel enough to leave you hanging too long...**

**Thanks for reviews from chiriko1117, arwenjanelilylyra, Lady Drama, aahsan (although your review was for chapter 10, so you might not be reading this immediately) and AuntMo. **

* * *

The explosion came from near the bar, and several people screamed, their voices mingling with the sound of breaking glass.

For a moment, Sirius could not see what had happened (A spell gone wrong? An argument turned nasty? Or just a barman dropping glasses...?) and then he saw the figures at the centre of it, and instantly knew that it was more serious than that.

They were masked and hooded, and they had turned the bar into chaos. Spells were being fired off right and left. There were at least seven or eight of them, and they moved fast. Already, there were overturned tables. Broken glass all over the floor. People shouting and screaming.

With horror, Sirius saw a spell (he wasn't sure what) hit one of the barstaff. Then another hit a customer, who screamed, as blood spurted.

A lot of people were simply staring, frozen. Others were panicking. Falling over chairs and tables and other people in their attempt to escape. A few had kept their wits and drawn their wands, fighting back.

Sirius' first thought was _Death Eaters_. But there were no Death Eaters in this time.

Were there?

Whoever they were, they were dangerous and malevolent. And it occurred to Sirius - the thoughts all flashing through his head in seconds - that nobody in this bar really knew what they were doing. They had learned Defence Against the Dark Arts at school, and had probably been taught to duel in strictly controlled environments. They had thrown childish hexes at other teenagers, and learnt how to fight by the rule book... but none of them had ever done it in a real, dangerous setting. None of them had spent their days coming up against Death Eaters. They could do it all in an exam hall, but in a real crisis, they were clueless.

Nobody in this bar had never known true, constant danger, or learnt, from bitter experience, just how far real fighting differed from the classroom. None of them had learnt how to react with hair-trigger precision, and how to watch three enemies at once (the one in front of you, the one behind you, and the one behind your mate) because if you didn't - if you weren't fast or vigilent enough; if you lost concentration, even for a second - you and you mate would both be dead. Rose, and other trained Aurors, might know better, but Rose was not here. Nobody here knew any of that.

Nobody except him.

But he was horribly, hideously out of practice. He had lost a lot of his fitness, and he had not cast a spell since before he was arrested... His wand was in his hand (old instincts had taken over) but he had never used this wand, and it felt unfamiliar. For the first time in his life, Sirius hesitated before casting a spell.

James and the others, on the other hand, had gone into action, but they were upracticed amateurs. They were not working together, using the safety of numbers, backing and covering each other, the way Sirius had learnt to do with the Order. They were not using their heads and instincts together, but were losing it, and panicking.

James' reactions were quick, but any idiot could see exactly what he was going to next. Louis wasn't even watching the short man to his left, who was getting closer...

And, across the other side of the room, Sirius saw Lily.

She wasn't moving, but was standing, rigid and frozen, gazing in disbelief at the scene playing out in front of her, which had turned into a deadly bar brawl. Her wand was in her hand, but she wasn't using it.

As he watched, a man in a hood appeared in front of her, and, too quickly for her to react, a hand was raised and, without magic being used, she was flung to the floor.

And Sirius was moving. Without even thinking about what he was doing, he made for her. He could see her, past other bodies that kept getting in his way. Her fingers scrabbling for the wand that had fallen to the ground. Her attacker seeming to make a mocking comment. The expression on her face as the man grabbed her arm, stopping her reaching the dropped wand, and hauling her half to her feet... And a wand was pointing at her. He was going to be too late...

* * *

Fuck, why had she got drunk? If she could only think clearly, she would be able to get herself out of this.

Where was her wand? She had dropped it. She couldn't find it. If she wasn't drunk...

If she wasn't drunk, she would have had that stupid encounter with Seb Graves...

No, don't think about that now, Lily. You're in trouble. Somehow, her muddled senses got that much through to her. How it had all happened, though, she wasn't at all sure. One minute, she had been fleeing towards the toilets, thinking only of escaping from Seb. The next, the whole bar was in uproar, with masked figures everywhere, and shards of glass flying. Where was Meri? She hadn't seen her...

"Well, well," a sneering voice said above her, "Miss Potter, I believe. You seem a little the worse for wear, my dear. Young ladies really shouldn't get into these situations... But if you come with me, I'll make sure you're all right, don't worry..."

She had no idea who he was; she did not recognise the voice. But it didn't surprise her that he knew her; people tended to. His tone of voice was unmistakably threatening, even in her current state, and the pain of the blow he had landed on her face was creeping in. Desperately, she tried to move backwards, but her legs wouldn't do what she wanted them to.

Where the _hell _had her wand gone?

She felt a hand on her arm; a predatory, unfriendly hand that gripped hard. Her sense that she was in very deep trouble increased tenfold, as panic began to set in.

She fought against him, but he was far stronger than she was, and she realised that she was completely helpless.

"Well, you've got a prize," a new voice joined them, but Lily was beyond turning to see who it was. Another anonymous, hooded figure, although a female one this time, by the voice. There was something vaguely familiar about this one, but her head was spinning wildly, and she couldn't place it. It didn't seem very important. She was going to die...

"Harry Potter's daughter," the voice went on, in tones of glee, "Of all the people to find! You come for a bit of fun, and you leave with the trophy... You'd better get her out of here though, if you're going to, before the Aurors get here. That's going to be a nice bit of bargaining power, isn't it?"

She wasn't going to die after all. At least not now. She was going to be kidnapped, and used to blackmail her family. And there was nothing she could do to save herself, because she still didn't know what had happened to her wand. Despair washed over her...

The stunning spell hit the man who was holding her out of the blue. He dropped to the floor, his hand releasing her arm. All she could do was stare at him, not fully understanding what had happened. The woman had shrieked, and retaliated against their attacker, but it appeared that they were more than a match for her. A few rapid spells later, she too had crumpled to the ground. Hands - different hands - were gripping Lily's shoulders, and a familiar voice - with a note of panic in it - was demanding to know whether she was all right.

She looked up into the face of Sirius Black. For a long moment, she just stared. She didn't know where he had come from, or how he had got there. Had he been in the bar? She didn't know. It didn't matter. There were black spots in front of her eyes, and she felt sick and light-headed.

Then she looked at the two fallen figures, and back up at Sirius, and a lop-sided smile appeared on her face.

"You did magic," she said simply, before the darkness closed in and she passed out.

* * *

Sirius stared down at her for a moment. Fuck, his hands were shaking. He needed to sort himself out. And other people. He'd taken two of them down, but there were more... But he couldn't just leave Lily. He looked anxiously at her. Was she hurt?

A dark haired girl appeared beside him suddenly.

"Lily!" she exclaimed, "Is she okay?" She didn't even seem to have registered who Sirius was in her concern for her friend.

"I don't know," Sirius said desperately, "Are you with her? Can you look after her?"

The girl looked at him suddenly for the first time, appeared to take in who he was, judging by the slight shock in her eyes, and nodded abruptly.

"Yes."

He liked people who didn't waste time with pointless questions and extra words when there was a job to be done. He smiled briefly at the girl. He really didn't want to leave her like this, but... He looked around to see some people still fighting, others cowering, terrified, behind overturned furniture, and still others on the ground, hurt, perhaps even killed.

"Get her out of here, and home if you can," he said urgently, before standing up to find James standing beside him, dishevelled and slightly out of breath.

"Is she okay?" James asked the same question.

"I think so," it was Lily's friend who answered, "I think she's just fainted... I'm going to go..." she looked around, "I'm sorry, I'd stay and help..."

"Get her out, Meri," James said briefly, "And let the Ministry know, if they don't already. We need them down here."

The girl called Meri nodded, grabbed Lily firmly, and disapparated, as many others had already done.

For a moment, James and Sirius looked at each other.

"You saved her," James said, evenly, "I couldn't get there in time. They'd have got her. They knew who she was."

Sirius felt that everything he was feeling was going to be showing in his face, but he pulled himself together.

"No time now, mate," he said, "We've got some nutters to beat."

* * *

"What's the matter?" Ginny dropped her book with a clatter at the expression on her husband's face as he came into the room, dressed for going out, "What's happened?"

"There's been an attack again. It's the League again by the sound of it, but they're getting braver. It wasn't a Muggle attack this time. I need to get down there..."

"What?" Ginny looked concerned, "Why? Isn't there someone on duty? You're not usually the one to be first on the scene these days. Is it bad?"

"It was at the Sickle Moon," Harry said shortly, "James and Lily were there... They're all right," he added hastily, as she turned white, "Although you might want to get over to Lily's. She was hurt, but not badly. I spoke to James, who'd spoken to Molly. Lily got home safely - Meri Hewitt got her back - but she's upset. In shock, at a guess.

"But I'm going down, because they've managed to catch most of them, so we've got a lot to sort out. Idiots, I don't know what they expected, bursting into a bar full of witches and wizards. Although the crowd in there seem to have done quite well, considering that they were totally unprepared and at least half of them must have been drunk. But I'm sure I'll hear the whole story when I get there."

"If James is there, Sirius and Louis must both be there too," Ginny pointed out, "They all went out together."

"Well, I only spoke to James, after I got the call from the office. But I daresay they're there. And I expect Sirius would have done a better job of fighting dark witches and wizards than most of those modern kids. He's certainly had more practice."

Ginny stood up.

"I'm going to go and see how Lily is."

Harry nodded.

"Let me know. I'll see you later."

The Sickle Moon was almost unrecognisable as the sophisticated bar it had been at the beginning of the night. Its owner was standing in the midst of the ruins, talking to an Auror and looking anguished. He had not been in the bar that night, but had been summoned to the scene, which must have been fairly devastating for him, Harry thought. The Sickle Moon was new, and he must have sunk a lot of money in the investment.

Harry looked around him, and his heart sank. On the wall, above the bar, was a large gleaming red circle, which gave the impression of having been painted on with blood. He knew it was not blood, because he had seen it before. The Dark League's answer to the old Dark Mark, although it served a different purpose. It had been appearing increasingly often since the League had been forced underground after the unpleasant case of six years ago. That circle, with the large, blood-red 'M' painted inside it. Slightly reminiscent of the symbol of the Deathly Hallows, which Harry was sure wasn't an accident. That had, after all, been Grindelwald's symbol, and Grindelwald's beliefs chimed well with those of the League.

The 'M' stood for Mudblood, or equally well for Muggle, and appeared daubed on scenes of Muggle persecution, and on the houses and property of Muggle-borns; a brand of supposed inferiority. Sean Sykes, the owner of Sickle Moon, was Muggle-born, and had recently, in his role as a successful businessman, given an interview in which he had talked of the 'remains of prejudice against Muggle-borns in certain parts of mainstream society,' and the need to eradicate it. Harry had never met the man, but had been vaguely impressed by the tone of the interview. Other people had clearly been less impressed, and Sykes had become the next victim of the League.

"Sir," an Auror bustled up to Harry, "We've got everything more or less under control, although to be honest, it already was, pretty much, by the time we got here. We've got six prisoners over there. Three of them are unconscious, but they've only been hit with stunners. Two of the others are injured; they're being treated, as is everyone else who was hurt of course. No fatalities, although several people have been taken to St Mungo's with severe injuries. Two of the attackers escaped though. We're questioning those who aren't injured, and the prisoners of course. They're refusing to talk though. You might have better luck with them than us..."

"I'll come in a minute," Harry said grimly, "I want to talk to my son."

He went up to where James, Sirius, Louis and the others were talking to another two Aurors. Annabelle was being treated for a cut to the head, and Louis was sporting the beginnings of a black eye, but there didn't seem to be any serious injuries.

"Dad!" James broke off from what he had been saying to the Auror, "You came down."

Harry nodded.

"Yes. Are you all right?"

"I'm fine," James assured him, "We all are. Have you seen Lily?"

"Your Mum's gone to see her. I gather she's all right though; a few cuts and bruises and fairly distressed, but all right. You did a good job here" Harry changed the subject, looking around, "Jefferson just told me it was all under control by the time they got here."

James grinned faintly.

"That was mainly Sirius. You should have seen him..."

Sirius, who was sitting on one of the few tables to have survived the battle, looking untidy and a little tired, shrugged.

"It's not the first time I've fought people like that. And that lot aren't like Death Eaters. They don't have a Dark Lord waiting to punish them if they lose."

Harry nodded, knowing what he meant.

"We wouldn't have done it without you, though," Louis put in, addressing Sirius, "None of us had a clue, really. We were just randomly firing off spells. You knew how to fight as a team." It had been a Sirius none of them had ever seen; sharp, focussed and in control, calling out orders to people even as he went into full action himself. And everyone, even James, who had a notorious difficulty with voices of authority, had obeyed automatically, because it had been obvious that Sirius, unlike the rest of them, had known what he was doing.

Sirius shrugged again.

"Of course I did. It was what I did, before. I lived in the middle of a war. I was a bit out of practice, but..." he paused for a moment, a thoughtful expression in his eys, "You don't forget."

"Have you finished with this lot?" Harry asked one of his fellow Aurors.

"Yes sir, we've got a fairly comprehensive statement. Of course, we may well have further questions later..."

Harry nodded.

"All right. You lot had better get home. Unless you've got more bars to visit, of course."

Nobody, not even James, felt like continuing to another bar. They were tired, and the shock of the whole thing was starting to set in. Fenella and Annabelle lived together, and elected to go home, saying they wanted to go to bed, and Adam departed at the same time.

"Nice to meet you," Fenella said dryly to Sirius as they parted, "Shame it didn't go quite as we planned."

He laughed.

"We'll have to try again some time."

She smiled at him.

"Yes. See you soon," and with that friendly goodbye, they were gone.

"I'm off too," said Louis, "I want to go and put some ice on this bloody eye. I'm going to look a proper mess tomorrow."

James looked at Sirius.

"What about you? You're going back to Mum and Dad's, presumably? Are you planning on going straight to bed?"

Sirius shrugged.

"Don't know. Probably not. I don't feel much like sleeping."

"No, me neither," said James, and glanced over at his father, who was now over by the prisoners, "Mind if I come with you? I want to talk to Dad, but he's busy now. I could wait until he came in..."

"Feel free. Like I say, I don't think I'll be sleeping for a while."

The house was empty when they reached it. Ginny must be still with Lily.

"I hope she's okay," James said, as they made themselves at home. He didn't have to be more specific; Sirius' mind was also on Lily.

"Yeah..." he agreed, not trusting himself to say more. During the battle, when she had been in danger, and then afterwards, when he had had to keep his head together and focus on what he was doing, it had gone out of his mind. But now all he could see in his head was the image of Lily twined around the young man in the bar...

"I'm going to make tea," James went on, "D'you want one?"

Sirius assented, knowing that he wouldn't be sleeping much tonight anyway. James went to put the kettle on.

"Last weekend," he said, abruptly, his back to Sirius, "I wasn't just being stupid, was I?"

There was a pause

"Oh," Sirius said at last, uncomfortably, "You remember that?"

"I didn't at first," James replied, "But it came back. I didn't say anything, because Louis said he reckoned I was imagining things. Only thing is, I think he might have been lying... So what's going on?"

He could deny it. He could, again, claim that what James had seen was nothing, and if he was honest with himself, that wouldn't be far from the truth, because nothing _had_ happened.

But that would be denying that he felt anything for Lily, and he found that he didn't want to do that, despite what he knew her brother's reaction would be. It would be wrong; it would be implying that she was no different from any of the girls he had been with over the years. And that _wasn't _the truth, and he couldn't do it.

"Nothing's going on," he said at last, truthfully, "But I promise you one thing; what I said last week, it was true. I wouldn't hurt her. Not ever. _She_ isn't the one going to get hurt here."

James had turned round and was looking at him.

"So you like her?" he asked evenly.

"Yes," Sirius said simply, "But it isn't the way you think it is. I'd never mess her around, because I care about her, for all kinds of reasons. I care about her because she's part of my best friend's family, and because she saved me from Azkaban. And yes, I care about her for herself too. But you don't need to worry. I don't think she's going to give me much of a chance to hurt her. It's pretty obvious she's not thinking about me."

"Oh," a realisation appeared in James' eyes, "You saw her tonight, didn't you? That can't have been much fun."

"It wasn't," Sirius admitted.

"It didn't mean anything," James said, "Lily doesn't fancy Seb Graves, I'm a hundred percent sure of that. She was just drunk," he hesitated, "And Lily sometimes does that sort of thing to take her mind off other things. It didn't look like she wasn't interested in you, from what I saw last weekend."

Sirius sat back in his chair, with a sigh.

"She was drunk then as well," he looked curiously at James, "This isn't quite the reaction I'd expected. Last weekend, you pointed a wand at me and told me to stay the hell away from her."

James looked uncomfortable.

"Yeah, well that tends to be my automatic reaction. I know she gets pissed off at me about it, and the others are always telling me I need to back off a bit, but it's not that I have some problem with her having a boyfriend. I want her to be happy as much as anyone!

"I just... well, I hate the stuff people say about her. I hate it that guys chase after her because they think she's easy. I just want her to get a bit of respect for herself, you know? It's like she doesn't care what anyone says..."

"I think she does," Sirius interrupted, remembering a certain conversation in a Northumbrian hotel a long time ago.

"Well, I worry about her," James concluded, "And I can't help it if that makes me sound like her mother. One of these days, she's going to get hurt; and I don't necessarily mean emotionally. She doesn't look after herself. It's okay when it's just some harmless bloke we've all known since school, but look at tonight. She wasn't in any state to defend herself. If you hadn't been there..." he broke off and sighed, "And now I sound like a hypocrite as well. It's not as if I never drink too much, I know.

"But... well, what I'm trying to say is, last weekend, I didn't know you, only your reputation. And that wasn't exactly good, mate, where girls are concerned. I'm not trying to have a go or anything; mine used to be just as bad, before I got myself tied down," he grinned faintly, "But I saw the way you looked at her tonight, when you thought she might be badly hurt, and I suppose I realised... you weren't just messing around, like I thought you were. I mean, it'd be a bit weird, but we'd get used to it..."

Sirius returned the grin, with a tinge of sadness.

"Well, thanks for the vote of approval..."

"I didn't mean it like that!" James protested, but Sirius ignored him, and continued.

"But I don't think anything's going to happen. Messing around or otherwise."

"Don't worry about Seb Graves," James said firmly, "That's nothing, I know it is, although I'd like to knock his teeth in for going after her when she was that drunk. But the thing is, when Lily really likes someone - and as far as I know, it's only happened once before, and she doesn't know I know about it - she _doesn't_ go snogging them in bars."

And as if to underline his words, the kettle boiled at that moment, and before James had finished pouring it into mugs, Ginny Potter returned and the conversation was at an end.

* * *

**I'm sorry to those who were hoping for more Lily/Sirius interaction. There was intended to be a bit more than that brief moment in the middle. I PROMISE that the next chapter will make up for it!**

**IMPORTANT: **

**The references to the organisation called the Dark League are not just random (there have been previous hints in this story of increasing dark arts activity). They are not really part of the main plot of this story, except in an incidental way as in this chapter, but it is important that they are part of the background in this time. Choices is part of a series of interlinked stories, in which the Dark League plays a big part. Once I have finished this, I'm going back to a prequel featuring Lily and co at school, and then there will be at least one more. **

**So don't think that the Dark League is going to play a huge part in this story, but don't forget about them either...**

**Reviews please? **


	32. How to Step Off a Cliff

**A/N: Thanks to the reviewers - arwenjanelilylyra, AuntMo, GetOffMyCarousel, kim and Lily Anne Rose. This chapter is specially for GetOffMyCarousel, because I got your review to Chapter 30 when I was about half way through writing this one, and it made me smile :-D Hopefully you'll understand why when you get there...**

**And to kim, whose review was unsigned (and also for Chapter 23, so maybe you won't see this) - thanks for the compliment, but no I am not JK Rowling in disguise ;-). I wish! And that also works for a disclaimer. I am not JK Rowling, therefore I do not own anything from the Harry Potter books.**

**An interesting idea though - do you think JKR does secretly haunt the fanfic pages...? I know she's been heard to say she thinks people writing HP fanfic is great fun...**

* * *

Sirius went to visit her the next morning. It probably wasn't a very sensible thing to do under the circumstances, but he woke up in a reckless mood (one he hadn't really felt since arriving in this time) and found that he didn't actually care. He just wanted to see her.

It was Sunday, so he knew that she wouldn't be at work. What he had forgotten was that Molly would probably be in as well, and it was her who answered the door when he knocked.

"Oh!" she seemed surprised to see him, "Hey, Sirius. Come on in."

He followed her into a pleasant, open plan room, with kitchen units divided from the living room only by a dining table. It was considerably cleaner than James' flat, and definitely, although understatedly, feminine. There was a smell of coffee in the air.

"Are you okay?" Molly asked him, "After last night, I mean? It sounded horrible."

She shivered, and Sirius almost smiled. Of course, it _had_ been horrible, but nothing compared to a lot of what he'd been through.

"I'm fine," he told her, "How's Lily?"

"Okay, I think. I mean, she was a bit of a state when she came home last night, but that was partly because she was so drunk. And she kept worrying about Seb Graves, who was this boy we were at school with; I think they must have been in the bar together. I don't know what that was all about. She wasn't making much sense by that point. I haven't seen her yet today; she's still asleep..."

"No she's not," a voice said from the doorway.

Sirius jerked his head round and found Lily standing there, and his heart skipped a beat.

She had clearly just stumbled out of bed, and was wearing a dressing gown that finished just above her knees. Her hair was tousled, and there was a sleepy expression on her face. She had a bruise on her cheekbone, but other than that, there was no obvious mark of last night's ordeal. The legs that appeared below the dressing gown were bare, and Sirius could not help wondering what - if anything - she was wearing underneath it, although he caught that thought before it could go any further.

"Sirius," she said, sounding as though she was only just awake, "I wasn't expecting you to be here."

"No... well, I thought I'd drop by and see how you were."

"There's coffee in the caffetiere," Molly put in, "Anyone want some? It should be hot still."

"Oh, Merlin, yes please," Lily said gratefully, dropping onto a dining chair.

"I won't, thanks," Sirius replied, then turned to Lily, "How are you feeling?"

She thought about this.

"Tired. A bit headachey. In need of coffee. But I'm fine," she looked at him, "What about you? James told Molly you were all okay..."

"We're fine," he assured her, "Louis' going to have a lovely black eye this morning, but nothing worse. A few other people weren't so lucky; they took a couple to St Mungo's..."

"Who?" she asked quickly, but Sirius did not know the names.

"Well, I'm glad I wasn't there," Molly commented, "I'd have gone to pieces."

"A bit like me then," Lily laughed shortly, "I wasn't much help."

Molly, who had finished her own coffee, announced her intention of having a shower, and departed.

For a moment, Lily and Sirius sat and looked at each other.

"I'm surprised you're not a bit more hungover," he commented at last, "You were pretty drunk last night."

She laughed hollowly.

"I know. I don't get bad hangovers. I've got a slight headache, and I'll feel a bit wobbly all day, but that's as bad as it gets."

"Lucky you," he remarked dryly.

"Well, sort of. It encourages me to drink far too much though, because I know I won't really feel it the next day. And then I get drunk and do stupid things."

"Did you get your wand back, by the way?" he asked eventually, after another pause, in which he wondered whether she was thinking of that kiss last night, "We found it just after you'd gone..."

"Yes, Claire brought it round," she said absently, before turning to what she was really thinking about, "Sirius, last night... you saved me."

He smiled slightly.

"Count it a debt repaid. Or half of one. You've saved me twice."

"I suppose so. Well anyway... thank you."

There was another silence, and he wondered why things were awkward between them. They never had been before.

"Sirius..." she said at last, "There's something I have to say..." the words had sort of fallen over themselves to get out, and her face looked a bit desperate. He looked warily at her, wondering what was coming.

"Last night, I kissed Seb Graves."

Well, whatever he had expected, it wasn't that.

"I know. I saw," he replied, a little shortly, then laughed, "Looked like you were having fun."

"Well, I wasn't," she said, shutting his laughter off abruptly, "I was kissing him because... well because I wanted to prove that I still could."

He raised his eyebrows.

"You wanted to prove that you could still kiss? Well, repeating what you told me on Friday night, I don't think that's the sort of thing you _forget_."

"I didn't mean that. I meant, I wanted to prove that I was still _me_. That I could still pull if I liked and have fun. Because recently, I haven't been doing that, and it's been scaring me. I've been thinking about one person instead, and that's not like me at all. So I thought I'd get rid of it by going and doing the sort of thing I always used to."

"Oh," was all he managed to say. Behind the deliberately calm mask, his brain was going into hyperdrive. Why was she telling him this? Why _would_ she tell him this? Did she mean...? She couldn't. But why _else _would she be telling him this? How was he supposed to react? What was he meant to _say_?

"Did it work?" he found himself asking.

"No," she said, softly, "It didn't work."

She avoided his eyes as she got up and went to fetch the sugar from a cupboard.

"Sure you don't want coffee? There's still enough," she said, her voice falsely bright.

He followed her, and leaned on the counter top beside her.

"Lily," he said gently, ignoring the question, "Why did you just tell me that?"

For a moment she paused, still, and then she turned to look at him, and there were tears swimming in her eyes, although she did her best to smile.

"Why do you think?" she whispered.

Sirius was not sure what was happening, but this wasn't what he'd imagined from this visit. Something strange was happening to his breathing, and small fireworks were going off in his brain.

He looked down at her. Her hair was untidy after just getting out of bed, she had not put make-up on, or done any of the things she presumably usually did to her face in the morning, she still had that bruise on her cheek, and now that he looked closer, there were shadows under her eyes.

And she was just about the most beautiful thing he had ever seen, standing there in her dressing gown.

There did not seem to be anything to say to her question. The look in her eyes told him that he could not have misunderstood. So he didn't bother with words.

Instead, he leaned forward, cupped her face with one hand, and kissed her.

* * *

It could not have been more different from Seb Graves. It was the first time she had kissed Sirius since that night in 1981, but it felt somehow familiar. He tasted different, because he had not been drinking, but the part that was Sirius himself had not changed. And it felt right. A horrible, cliche thought, but true nonetheless.

He kissed better than Seb Graves too, she thought, even as he pulled away from her, a slight question in his eyes. She answered the question by pressing herself close to him and continuing the kiss.

His arms went round her waist, and hers wrapped around his neck, and she refused to think; refused to worry, because nothing mattered but that he was kissing her. All the days of agonising fell away and she was soaring. The why and the how; all the problems and difficulties; they could all wait...

And a voice spoke from the doorway.

"Okay Lil," it said cheerfully, "If you want the shower, it's... Oh!"

* * *

They broke apart and there was silence for a moment, while Molly stared open-mouthed at them.

"I... Sorry," she muttered eventually, "I'll, um, leave you to it..."

She disappeared.

Sirius looked down at Lily. They were still very close together.

"I'm not sure what the hell just happened," he said quietly, "But we should probably talk about it..."

"Yes," she agreed, sounding a little breathless, "But not here," she glanced at the door Molly had just disappeared out of, "It isn't fair. It's Moll's kitchen too."

"Your room?" he suggested.

She giggled shakily. "You realise what Molly would think?"

"Does it matter?"

"Yes," she said firmly, "You don't know how quickly gossip can spread in this family. Let's go out somewhere."

He glanced down at her, and the corner of his mouth moved upwards.

"Like that?"

She looked down at what she was wearing.

"I'll go and get dressed. You can wait for me here. Or if you'd rather, we can meet at the Leaky Cauldron in a bit."

They were very carefully keeping their voices normal, he thought, not saying any of the things that were in their heads. But he had no desire to wait here and have to talk to Molly, after what she had just seen.

"Ten minutes?" he suggested.

She raised her eyebrows.

"Try half an hour."

He laughed briefly.

"Twenty minutes?"

"I'll try."

She made for the door to the stairs, and he turned to leave.

"Lily?" he said, just as she reached the door. She turned.

"What?"

"Just one thing, before I go. Just so I know. Are you angry with me?"

She stared at him in surprise.

"No. Why would I be angry with you?"

* * *

Twenty five minutes later, she slid into the Leaky Cauldron, and looked around. Yes, he was there, propping up the bar and frowning slightly. She made her way over to him, and they found an empty and relatively private booth. The pub was fairly quiet, with just a few people - families mostly - who had come for Sunday lunch. They got a few looks, but for the most part, people ignored them.

Lily, who had had nothing for breakfast except the coffee and was starving, ordered a fried egg and toast. It wasn't what she normally liked for breakfast, but it was better than anything else the Leaky Cauldron had on offer at that time of day. Then she looked steadily at Sirius, and took the conversation up exactly where it had left off.

"Why should I be angry with you?"

"Well..." he looked at her, "I kissed you... a bit out of the blue."

"Did you notice me complaining?"

"Well, no," the ghost of a grin passed across his face, "But... it probably wasn't the best thing to do. I mean, you were trying to tell me something important - I think - and I should probably have tried to give you some sort of answer, not just kissed you..."

"Oh," she said evenly, "I thought it _was _an answer. Wasn't it?"

"Yes," he replied, "But talking about it would probably have been more sensible."

"Well, we _are_ talking about it," she pointed out, "And you know, we seem to have done the whole thing back to front, so why stop now?"

"What d'you mean?" he asked, confused.

"Well, doing it properly, people start off by talking about the fact that they like each other, then go on on to the kissing stage, usually after a date or two, and get to having sex a bit later. We started with the sex, then we just did the kiss, and now we're talking. We seem to have missed out the dates..."

He grinned.

"I never did like doing things the proper way. But we should probably be serious..."

"Do we have to be?" she rubbed her hand across her eyes tiredly, "I don't know. I shouldn't have just come out with it like that; I'm sorry. Oh Merlin, I don't know how to do this. I don't know how to have this sort of conversation..."

"I haven't had that much practice at it myself," he said, "Which is partly why I kissed you back then, because I didn't know what to say. That and I couldn't help it. I've been wanting to do it for ages..."

"Well, I'm glad you waited until now," she said, "because I wouldn't have know how to react until the last couple of days. At least, I would, but then I'd have freaked out. When you first came here, I couldn't even let myself think about you that way. It was too weird. You were my dad's _godfather_. But I suppose... I've stopped thinking of you like that. You belong here now. And all I can think about is... well, just _you_. Not who you are or where you belong... But I tried not to, because I thought you didn't feel the same way. I thought you didn't want a relationship, that you just wanted to have fun..."

"I do," he broke in, "But since I started to get to know you, I've been wondering whether you can't manage to do both at the same time. Can't a meaningful relationship still be fun?

"You know, Lily," he went on, "I never _did _relationships. They bored me. But you... you're different. D'you remember what I said to you, ages ago, when we first met? In that hotel room?"

"Which bit?" she asked, with a slight smile.

"The bit about why I liked you. I don't really want to have to repeat it, because I sounded like an idiot the first time, but..."

"I remember it," she said softly, "I remembered it for eight months. I couldn't forget it."

"Oh. Good. I wish I could say the same, but I _did_ forget, obviously. You saw to that. But what I'm saying is... I suppose I knew you were special, even then. I never thought we'd ever be in a position to be having this conversation, but... that night... You said it didn't mean anything in the morning. But it didn't mean nothing; not to me. I'd never met a girl like you... And when I ended up here, I couldn't help it. I tried to tell myself it was nothing, because I don't do real feelings. Not when it comes to girls. I just have fun, like you said. But it wasn't like that with you. Only it was all impossible..."

"Because I'm your best friend's granddaughter," she finished wryly, "And that's never going to go away or change. But... d'you think we can get to the point where it doesn't matter?"

"D'you really mean that?" There was almost disbelieving hope in his voice. It was the same feeling that was filling her chest and she almost laughed. This could not be happening. After all that, it could not really be ending up like this...

"Of course I do," and she found that she was almost crying, not laughing, "Merlin, Sirius, I told you! I've been driving myself crazy. That thing with Seb..."

He winced at the memory.

"You already explained that," he said quickly, "Let's not talk about it any more."

"No, let's not," she agreed readily, "But... oh, shit, Sirius, can we _really _try and make this work? I mean I _want_ to. But... it's crazy and weird and I've spent the last few weeks persuading myself that it _wouldn't_ work..."

His hand found hers over the table.

"I have no idea," he said honestly, "I'm hopeless at making relationships work, even when there's no reason why they shouldn't. But then, I always work harder at things when there are plenty of obstacles in the way," he smiled briefly, then looked serious again, "But... can we give it a go, Lily? Because if you want to, and I want to - and Merlin knows, _I _want to! - isn't it worth a try? I mean, we can take it really slowly," he smiled again, "You said we'd missed out the dates. We can go back and make up for it if you like?"

She looked at him, her smile a little wobbly through the various emotions that were flooding through her.

"Sirius... are you asking me out?"

"Yes," he answered simply, "Because _I've _spent the last few weeks persuading myself you don't give a damn about me. And now I find out you do... well, I'm not just going to let that slip by," he groaned suddenly, "Oh, Merlin. I just took Odette Irvine's advice; and not only that, I quoted her too!"

Lily giggled, and then frowned worriedly.

"Oh, Sirius. I just don't know. It's so complicated..."

"Lily, don't make me beg. Because I will."

She looked up at him, and his blue eyes were fixed steadily on her, and she found that she could read everything in them. The mask was down again, but instead of the pain and grief that had been there the last time, there was something else; something just as deep but entirely different.

It felt like she was standing at the edge of a cliff. If she stepped over, who knew what would happen? There would be no going back, and the length of the drop was dizzying. But over that cliff was something she wanted desperately, and if she walked away now, she turned her back on it...

So she nodded.

"Okay," her voice shook slightly, "Let's give it a go."

And suddenly, he was grinning at her in exhiliration, his eyes lit up, and she was smiling back, and it really _did_ feel as though she'd just stepped off a cliff; there was a swoop and a rush of air, and it was as if she'd just left her stomach behind... But she wasn't falling, because Lily had discovered that she could fly without a broomstick.

* * *

"So, _please_ don't tell anyone. Not yet," Lily gazed pleadingly at her cousin, who looked worriedly back at her.

"Okay, I won't. But aren't you going to tell them anyway? And are you sure you know what you're doing?"

"No," Lily admitted in a low voice, "That's why I'm not telling them yet. We're... still working things out."

Molly sighed.

"Oh, Lil. Why do you have to make things so complicated?"

Lily had spared the time before rushing out that morning to impress upon her flatmate that on no account was she to spread any gossip around to the family, no matter what she'd seen. Molly had refrained from telling anyone, but when Lily returned (considerably later in the day) Molly had demanded to know what the hell was going on, and had refused to take no for an answer. Molly could be extremely determined, and so Lily had found herself telling her cousin a slightly abridged version of the story.

"But you know," Molly went on, "Everyone knows anyway."

"What?" Lily gaped at her.

"Yes," Molly continued, "I mean, _I_ knew you liked him; at least, I did after last night. You kept babbling about him..."

"Oh, Merlin," Lily groaned.

"And I'd sort of guessed before then," her cousin continued ruthlessly, "But I was talking to Roxy earlier - don't worry, I didn't say anything about the two of you kissing in the kitchen - and she knew all about it..."

"No, she didn't!" Lily interrupted indignantly, "She knew _tiny_ bits of it..."

"Oh, come on, Lil. You can't lie to save your life. Whatever you told her, she saw straight through it. And anyway, she'd been talking to some of the others..."

"I hate this family!" Lily wailed, "Why can't anybody just keep things to themselves?"

"Well, anyway, apparently Rose and Al and everyone know too..."

"_What_? Who's _everyone_?"

"Well, not James, according to Roxy, so you're safe there," Molly said soothingly, "And not your parents, either. Although your mum was sort of there last night, so she might have worked the same things out as me... but Roxy said her, Rose, Albus, Fred and Hugo. Oh, and that French woman who was friends with Sirius at school or something. And apparently Rose was talking about Louis as well..."

"Well, I knew Rose knew. And Louis too," said Lily bitterly, "Although I didn't expect Louis to go telling half the family. That's the last time I tell _him_ anything! But if Hugo knows, the whole world'll know before long. Great. Merlin, who'd have a family like ours?"

"I'm sorry," said Molly, apologetically, "But it wasn't anything to do with me... It was when you were all at the Burrow yesterday."

Lily sighed.

"No, it's not your fault. Thanks for the warning. But look, Moll... if you hear them talking about it again, could you... I don't know, head them off a bit. Tell them they're talking crap, and you're sure it's nothing, and you'd know if it was true because you live with me... That sort of thing? And would you be able to let me know what they're saying...?"

Molly raised her eyebrows.

"Um... I suppose so. I'm not that great at lying either though..."

"Okay," Lily sighed again, "Just keep quiet... and tell me what they say."

She was sure that she ought to be far more worried that more than half of her cousins, as well as one of her brothers, already knew about the developing relationship, which she and Sirius had agreed to keep to themselves for now. But really, she thought, as she rolled into bed that night, she couldn't bring herself to care much. Because Sirius liked her in the same way she liked him, and that was all that mattered right now.

* * *

"So, Louis," James began innocently, and Louis immediately looked suspiciously at him, "D'you remember telling me you thought I was imagining things about Lily and Sirius? And that you were sure there was nothing going on?"

"Um... yeah," Louis looked at his cousin through narrowed eyes, "Why?"

"Well, either you were wrong, or you were lying," James said conversationally, "And I know you quite well, and I can usually tell when you're not telling the truth, so I'm sort of thinking right now that you _were_ lying..."

"What makes you think I'm lying _or_ wrong? Why shouldn't I be right?" Louis asked.

James scowled at him.

"Don't even bother, Lou. For one thing, like I said, I can tell when you lie. I've watched you do it to other people too often. And anyway, I talked to Sirius and he admitted it..."

"_What_?" Louis yelped, "Jamie! What did you do to him?"

"Nothing," James looked pained, "Why does everyone always act as if I'm some sort of deranged idiot with violent tendencies?"

"Er, obvious reasons?" Louis grinned briefly at him before turning back to the matter in hand, "But what _did_ happen?"

James shrugged, choosing to ignore the first thing Louis had said.

"We talked about it. He's actually serious about her, you know. He really likes her. And he's a decent guy. I'm okay with it, if she likes him too."

"And if she _does_ like him, it wouldn't matter if you were okay with it or not," Louis pointed out, "Because it's none of your business. But... this isn't the usual James behaviour. Why aren't you raging in waving a wand and telling him to stay away from her?"

"Well, I'm not going to walk into more insults by bringing up the deranged idiot thing again," James said with a sigh, "But Sirius isn't one of those idiots who usually hang around her. I know what they say about him, but he really likes her; I could tell. I realised it last night actually, when he saved her from that bastard. You should have seen the expression on his face... Anyway, I don't think he'd hurt her. And actually, I think they'd be okay together. They're quite alike in a lot of ways. So if it makes her happy, then that's great. And if it stops her going with every guy who makes a move on her, then that's even better."

Louis had looked more and more surprised during this recital.

"Well... I'm glad you didn't hex his balls off," he said, "But have you actually thought about it? I mean, saying you think they'd make a good couple? Remember who he is! Don't you think it would be a bit weird?"

"I don't see why," James said carelessly, "Who cares about who he_ was_? He's only about a year or so older than her. And I can't think of him of Dad's godfather any more; it'd just be ridiculous! But anyway, _I _know Sirius likes her. But what I want to know is, did _you_ know?"

"No," Louis said honestly, "I had no idea he was interested in her. I did know she liked him a bit... but I don't know if it's serious. Anyway, I don't think anything'll happen. I think she's too freaked out by the idea, and I don't think he'll do anything about it either."

James looked thoughtful.

"I'm not so sure... I reckon something _will_ happen, and pretty soon too..." his eyes lit up suddenly, "What d'you say to a bet...? Ten galleons says... within a month?"

"No," Louis said firmly, "I'm not betting with you. You cheat."

"How can I cheat on this one?" James protested, "Either they do or they don't!"

"Or you give them a little bit of help," Louis said dryly, "Anyway, I'm not betting on that. It's not fair. And I, unlike you, don't just have spare ten galleons lying around either."

"You're turning boring," James grumbled, "Fine then. I bet Rosie'll be up for it..."

"James! You can't go telling Rose!"

"Oh, come on, Lou. This is Rose. D'you honestly think she won't have noticed for herself? And it's not like I'm suggesting _doing_ anything about it; it's just... observation. Sure you don't want in on it though? Don't look at me like that, Louis; you're turning into Fenella. There's nothing wrong with a bit of harmless gambling..."

* * *

**Yes, they finally got there!**

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**So many people have put this story on alerts, and even added it to their favourite story list, but haven't left a review to tell me why... Don't get me wrong, I'm just happy you're enjoying it, so don't let this stop you, and I still love all my faithful readers, whether they review or not. But... how about, if you like this story enough to put it on your favourites, you leave me a line or two to say why? **

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	33. Careers Talks and Gambling Rings

**A/N: Ok, after an extremely busy weekend I've managed to get this finished. Things have been hectic in the last few days, and I'm not entirely sure I replied to all reviews. If you left a signed one and I didn't reply, I'm really sorry - I almost always do, but sometimes when I'm really busy I forget. But you still get brownies, and it made me very happy to see people responding to my shameless manipulation last time :-P. So thanks to: AuntMo, chiriko1117, JemmadA, Luba1983, arwenjanelilylyra, HPFanFicLuvr and LexidaLou. You all made me very happy!**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Harry emerged from his study feeling tired. So much for a relaxing weekend.

He had just finished reading through the reports of the Aurors who had gone to the Sickle Moon last night, and of the one who had questioned the prisoners. There was a team trying to trace the attackers who had escaped, but so far they had had no luck. Nobody had seemed to recognise most of the culprits; either that or people were covering for them.

Which could mean that people were scared of becoming the next victims themselves, or it could mean that some of the people in the Sickle Moon were more sympathetic to the League than they would let on. James and the others had said that everything had been very confused, and Sirius had voiced a suspicion that not all the customers who had drawn their wands had been fighting _against_ the intruders.

It was all extremely worrying.

He had heard Sirius come in a short time ago and go down the hall to the room that had become his. Harry hesitated for a moment, then followed him. He had become aware, when listening to Sirius' account of Saturday night, that it was the longest conversation they had had since Sirius had first arrived in 2028. He had been so busy recently that he had hardly been at home, and even then, had left most of the conversation to Ginny.

It was amazing what you could get used to, he thought. It had become normal for Sirius to be around in the house. But he still felt that there were elements to it that he hadn't really faced; that he had simply avoided thinking about. He had grown used to talking normally to Sirius, as he would speak to any other man. He had not been able, quite, to treat Sirius as he treated his own children, for all they were much of an age. Probably that was best, he thought with a sigh. He still had a tendency to treat James, Al and Lily like children, which they weren't any more.

But still, he didn't feel like he had quite got the hang of what his relationship with Sirius was supposed to be. The young man was a stranger - and yet not a stranger. There were some things that were completely and utterly recognisable as the Sirius he had known. Of course, he would not - could not - treat Sirius in the same way he had done more than thirty years ago. Quite apart from Sirius being different, Harry himself was not fifteen any more. But he wasn't quite sure how he _should_ treat him.

They probably needed to have a few more proper conversations. However, just now there was something specific he wanted to talk to Sirius about, so he went down the hall and knocked at the bedroom door.

Sirius was doing nothing; just lying on his bed and staring at the ceiling. For a moment, Harry thught that perhaps he should not intrude, but after a moment of looking slightly disconcerted, Sirius smiled at him.

"Oh. Hey."

"Sorry," Harry said, "I'm not disturbing you, am I?"

"Not particularly," Sirius grinned at him, and it struck Harry that there was something different about him. He wasn't sure what it was, but... it was almost as if some of the shadow that had lurked behind his eyes had lifted. He seemed lighter, and... happier.

"Because there was actually something I wanted to talk over with you," Harry continued, ignoring this observation for the moment.

"Okay," Sirius sat up, "Have a seat if you want."

Harry sat down on a chair, and glanced around the room. It was the first time he had been in here since it had stopped simply being their guest room. Sirius hadn't personalised it very much - in fact, not at all. But then, what would he have personalised it with?

Harry looked at the young man in front of him. Hard to believe that he had been Harry's father's best friend. It had occurred to Harry, at various points in his adult life, just how young his parents had been, not only when they had died, but also when they had got married and had a child. Hardly more than kids themselves. And neither was Sirius.

"I've been talking to James," he said abruptly, "and I was reading the statements of the other people in the Sickle Moon last night. You did pretty well by all accounts."

Sirius smiled fleetingly.

"Well, it wasn't the first time..."

"No. That's what I wanted to talk to you about. Ever thought about being an Auror?"

"Well... yeah," Sirius stared at the floor for a moment, then looked up at him, "I used to think about it when I was still at school. Not that seriously though. I never really thought properly about what I'd do when I left. We used to talk about it a bit... but then Dumbledore recruited us for the Order. And I never thought about what I'd do after the war. Seemed like tempting fate."

"But the work you were doing for the Order... that was basically an Auror's work, wasn't it?" Harry asked.

"Yeah, basically," Sirius agreed, "But I wasn't qualified or anything. The department wouldn't have taken me on, once the war was finished, even if they hadn't all thought I was a traitor by that time," he looked grim, "I'm not sure I'd have wanted to work for them either, after the way they treated me. No offence or anything..."

"None taken," said Harry lightly, "I like to think the department's a bit better these days than it was then. We don't tend to throw people into Azkaban without a trial. Not that the trial part is actually our responsibility. That's Hermione's department's job, so you can be pretty certain that they give people a fair hearing as well. But when I asked if you'd ever thought about being an Auror, I really meant 'do you want to be an Auror?' Because to be quite honest, we could use you."

Sirius stared at him.

"But I just told you. I don't have any qualifications."

"Well, I wouldn't say you don't have _any_. According to your records, you've got NEWTs in Defence against the Dark Arts, Transfiguration, Charms, Potions and Herbology, which is five more than I've got. And you got Outstanding in all except Potions, which you got Exceeds Expectations in."

"You don't have NEWTs?" Sirius looked shocked, "But how did you get into the Auror Office? They want Exceeds Expectation in at least five subjects... At least, they did in my day."

"And still do, usually," Harry agreed, "But the thing is, while I should have been doing my NEWTs, I was actually fighting Lord Voldemort. They seemed to think that by the time it was all over, I'd probably learned everything I could have done to make it as an Auror - both in terms of NEWTs, and in terms of the Auror Training. Of course, we still _had_ training, but not to the same extent. And that's more or less what I'm offering you. Because you've had the experience too..."

"I've never come face to face with him," said Sirius bluntly.

"No, well, neither had a lot of the Aurors they took on after the war. It wasn't just me. There were a crowd of us, and a lot of us had missed out on NEWTs. But the thing was, we'd all done our fair share of fighting. The others had all either been helping the Order, or had joined the resistance inside Hogwarts. All of us, except Dennis Creevey, who was younger and joined us a bit later, had fought in the Battle of Hogwarts. Qualifications become a bit irrelevent when you've already learnt how to fight dark wizards by _doing_ it.

"And I'll be honest with you, right now, with things the way they are, we're short staffed. Of those original people, who joined after the war, there are only four of us left, and we're all more or less high ranking officials at the Ministry these days. We've got more in the way of responsibilities than just the on-the-ground stuff. There are a few good youngsters coming up, Rose among them, who've either just qualified, or are just about to. And don't get me wrong, they've got all the right skills and qualities. They're good; they'd have to be to have got this far. But they don't have any experience of the real thing. Basically, we could do with someone like you, who isn't snowed under with desk work, but who still knows what it's like to be in a real combat situation, and knows how to deal with it.

"So, what I'm offering is this: We couldn't let you in as a full Auror without any sort of training at all. But in real terms, you already know everything you're going to learn in the training anyway. So what we can do is take you on a kind of test year. Call it an apprenticeship. You train on the job; we pay you a smaller wage for your work. At the end of the year, you take the tests - which I think you could probably pass without much of a problem if you took them tomorrow, to be honest - and are then a full Auror," he looked at Sirius, "I don't expect you to make up your mind on the spot. Feel free to take your time and let me know. But how does it sound?"

Sirius simply stared at him for a moment, his mouth slightly open.

"Are you kidding?" he said at last, "It sounds _brilliant_! But... are you sure you want me? I mean, I'm not so sure about passing those tests tomorrow. I'm really out of shape. And... my magic's a bit rusty."

"Doesn't sound as if it was too rusty last night," Harry replied, "You were bloody impressive, according to everyone who saw you. And you're forgetting; I've actually seen you fight. I know what you can do."

"You have?" Sirius looked startled, "When? You can't have..."

"Well, I have," Harry said seriously, "Although I was a lot younger and you were a bit older, so admittedly, I can't put too much trust in the memory. But even without any of that, your qualifications and your reputation speak for themselves. You'd be very useful. In fairness to the others, we'd have to put you in a junior role, but give it a year or two..."

"Well..." Sirius sounded slightly stunned, "I won't say I was expecting this. But I don't need to think about it. The answer's yes."

"Great," Harry grinned broadly, looking so pleased and relieved that Sirius was forced to chase away any slight thoughts that Harry might have offered him the job out of pity. That was ridiculous. However sorry people might feel for him, you did not get taken on as an Auror as a sympathy gift. He was, if he was honest with himself, a little nervous about it; he had seen enough of Rose to know that she was a force to be reckoned with, and he was not as sure as Harry that his experience - which seemed quite a long time ago now - was as good as proper training. But it was not an opportunity to be passed up.

"So..." Harry continued, "How is everything, other than this? I'm glad you're joining in with what the kids are doing. You know, if there was any problem... anything you wanted to talk about... if you wanted to talk about what happened... well, I know I'm busy at the moment, but I'd always have time, you know. Strange though it seems, and even more so to you I expect, you were my godfather once. You were there for me, when I was a kid. So if you need it, I'm here for you too."

Sirius looked at him, feeling an overwhelming flood of emotion as he looked at the man who looked as he imagined James would have looked in middle-age, if... if he hadn't died; the man who had once been a baby, who had sat on Sirius' knee and chuckled as he threw him in the air...

And then, thinking about what Harry had just asked him, he felt an insane urge to laugh hysterically. What the hell would Harry say if Sirius said, "Oh, everything's just great. I've fallen in love with your daughter, and we're sort of seeing each other. So no, there aren't any problems, except that we're not quite sure how to tell anyone..." A large part of him wanted simply to say it; to get it out into the open. But enough of him could not stand the thought of seeing the friendly and slightly worried expression on Harry's face turn to anger, and that part overrode the insane part, and made him nod seriously.

"Well... thanks. I appreciate it. But I'm fine actually. At least, I'm getting there. It's not exactly easy. I miss them like hell. Maybe some time I will want to talk about them. But not yet..."

Harry nodded.

"I understand that."

And Sirius, looking at him, realised that it was true. Harry too had lost people close to him. A lot of people, and he had been younger then than Sirius was now. He understood exactly what Sirius was going through now, and that made Sirius suddenly feel more of a bond than he had yet felt with the man who had been his godson.

* * *

"I offered Sirius that job today," Harry told his wife, sitting on the bed.

Ginny, who was already in the bed, looked up and smiled.

"Oh good. What did he say?"

"He said yes. I'm not going to mention it at work tomorrow though, in case he has second thoughts. I'll double check with him tomorrow evening, and then we can get the ball rolling."

"Well, that'll please you," she commented, "Having another person with a bit of experience on board."

"Yes," Harry agreed absently, then said suddenly, "He's doing all right now, isn't he? You said you were worried about him last week. But he seems to be pulling through it. Obviously, he won't just get over things like that. But he seemed a lot better when I spoke to him this evening. Happier."

"Oh, really?" she looked thoughtful, "That's good." She looked as though she might have been going to say something else but, thinking about what he had just said, changed her mind.

"Well, I'm almost inclined to do the same to Lily," she said instead.

"What?" he looked at her, startled, "What d'you mean?"

Ginny waved a piece of parchment at him.

"I told her she had to write a report of that Quidditch match on Saturday. It was the condition of getting a Press Pass. This is it; the original copy, that is. The edited one went into today's edition. It's surprisingly good. We had to cut it down a lot, because it was far too long for a small match report... but what she actually wrote is excellent. I had no idea Lily could write like that."

"Oh," Harry held out his hand for the parchment, and scanned down it, "Yes, it is good isn't it? Has she ever thought about going into journalism, do you think?"

Ginny shrugged.

"Not as far as I know. But then, Lily hasn't really thought of very much, careerwise. She isn't working as a shop assistant because it's her dream job. She's working there because she couldn't think of anything else."

"True. Well, why don't you suggest it to her?"

Ginny looked thoughtfully at the piece of parchment covered with Lily's characteristic scrawl.

"You know, I might just do that..."

* * *

"Guess what?" Sirius asked Lily, who had her head on his shoulder. She looked up at him.

"What?"

They had met up on Monday morning. Roxy had told Lily that, after the trauma of what had happened at the Sickle Moon, she should take a day off. Lily had initially been inclined to refuse, because she felt absolutely fine, but had then rethought it, and said that yes, she did still feel a bit shaky and should probably have a good rest.

This, he told herself, _was_ resting, after all. She was perfectly relaxed and not doing anything exertive. They had flown from Barnstaple over to the North Devon coast, and were currently sitting on the pier of a small coastal town, watching a few early Muggle holiday makers making the most of the May sunshine. She had tried to persuade him to apparate, saying that he would have to learn some time, but he had refused, saying that he didn't want to splinch himself on their first date. So they had used the motorbike, which, Lily had to admit, had been more fun. And he was so happy to have the bike back, she couldn't really blame him for wanting to use it.

"I got offered a job today," he told her, in answer to her question.

"Really?" she pulled away from him slightly and stared at him, a smile appearing on her face, "That's great! Who by? Where? Is it one you want? How come you didn't tell me before?"

He grinned. He had been saving this news.

"Well... yes, it is one I want actually," he said casually, "I accepted it. And it was your dad. In his department. Seems like I impressed with my efforts on Saturday."

She stared at him for a moment, then laughed delightedly.

"Sirius! That's amazing! But you aren't an Auror..."

Sirius explained the terms of his new job, and she nodded, still grinning.

"Well, that makes sense. It's what you're good at. Does Rose know?"

He shook his head.

"Not yet."

Lily laughed again.

"She'll pretend to think it's a disasterous idea, but she'll actually be really pleased. Although she might think it's a bit unfair; she's been training for three years. But then, she'd never fought Death Eaters before last weekend," she looked thoughtfully at him, "But you know, you won't be able to avoid doing magic now. You'll have to do it all the time."

"I haven't been avoiding doing magic!" he protested, and then grinned sheepishly when she looked skeptically at him, "Well, okay, I was. Sort of. But I'm not any more," he looked down at her, "Honestly, after Saturday, it feels as if I'd released a dam, and I don't know what the hell I was worried about. It all happened exactly like it used to; I did it without even thinking. And once I knew I could, it all just went back to normal. I even made my toast by magic this morning."

She smiled at him.

"I told you. It all worked exactly like it was meant to, I suppose?"

"Well, not quite," he grinned at her, "I burnt the toast. But that's normal."

"I tell you what else you'll have to do," she pointed out, "And that's learn to Apparate. Does Dad know you can't?"

"He must," he said, "I mean, back when he was a kid, he knew me for, what was it... two years? He must have found out at some point."

"I wouldn't count on it," she warned him, "And even if he does know, I think he'll expect you to learn."

"And if I learn, then he certainly _won't_ know," he said wryly, "Because in that case, by the time I see him in twelve years, I _will_ be able to do it."

She laughed and then looked serious.

"I don't want you to disappear in twelve years," she said softly.

"It's a long time away," he pointed out.

"Not as long as the forever I'll have to live without you after that. I'm sorry. It's stupid even to think of what might happen in twelve years. We've only just got together. Who knows what's going to happen?"

"Yeah, I s'pose. But... actually, I was thinking..."

"What about?"

"Everything. Me going back. And I had an idea..."

* * *

A little while later, they strolled along the sea front. The slight melancholy brought on by their talk of what must happen in twelve years had blown away; they could not stay miserable today, Lily thought happily, looking down at where their hands were joined. She ought to be worried. Nobody but Molly knew that they were together today, but they couldn't keep it a secret forever... but right now, nothing mattered but the fact that his fingers were entwined with hers and that when he looked down at her and found her eyes on him, he smiled, and she read the same happiness in his smile that she knew was on her own face.

"Oh..." she remembered something suddenly, "Molly sent me a message by communicator today. She saw Hugo earlier, and apparently they're all making bets on us..."

"They're _what_?" he stared at her.

"Yes," she sighed, "I forgot you weren't used to this family. It's James' idea of course. I don't know how many of the others are in it, but probably most of them. They've all put money on how long it's going to be before we get together. Hugo tried to get Molly to join in, but she wouldn't."

Sirius threw his head back and roared with laughter.

"Well, I'm glad you think it's funny," she said resignedly, "I don't know. Who'd want a family like mine?"

"I would," he looked serious suddenly, "I think they're great. A hell of a lot better than mine ever was."

"Well, don't worry," she said, half jokingly, "You're part of this one now. Whatever happens with you and me. Once the Weasley clan have got their claws into you, you don't escape. They adopted Dad, and he ended up marrying Mum, so that was him stuck. They adopted Teddy, and now he's married to Victoire. And they've definitely adopted you now as well..." she broke off, suddenly realising where the story was going, "Anyway," she changed direction hastily, "I suppose it could be worse. I have no idea how they all found out, but at least they don't seem to be too upset about it. I'd have expected James to come storming in and threaten to kill you if you touched me, not start taking bets on how it's going to end up."

"Yeah, well, I had a bit of a talk with him actually," Sirius sounded a bit uncomfortable.

"You did?" she stared at him, "Well, I won't ask what you said, because you'd probably rather not tell me, but if you got my brother to behave sensibly, you're doing better than most people."

He laughed.

"Actually, he'd come round to it of his own accord. Basically said that so long as I didn't mess you around, it was okay."

"Good of him," Lily muttered sarcastically.

"Well, anyway," Sirius sensed the need to change the subject, "Of course it's funny. We can have loads of fun with it. None of them know we're already together. Come to think of it, why didn't Molly bet? _She_ knows; she could have bet on it, and she'd have won!"

"Because Molly's far too honest for that!" Lily smiled reluctantly, "I think she was quite indignant that they were betting at all."

"Well, the next thing to do is find out exactly what each of them have betted on," Sirius went on, "And then we can start having fun. I'll tell various people that I'm thinking of asking you out, for a start, only I'll tell them all different time scales. Let's see how much we can make them sweat. I wonder if any of them'll try and set us up so they win..."

"Probably. But I'm no good at lying," she reminded him, the reluctant smile growing a little.

"That's okay," he grinned wickedly at her, "I am."

They stood and looked down the beach at a couple of children who were paddling at the edge of the sea, shrieking and jumping over the waves.

Sirius turned and looked at her.

"Let's go and join in," he suggested.

"Try 'no,'" she retorted, "It's not _that_ warm. The sea'll still be bloody freezing!"

"So? What's a warming spell for?"

"Sirius..."

"Come on. Let's go paddling!"

And before she could say anything else, he grabbed her hand and began to run, dragging her, shrieking in protest, towards the sea.

* * *

Some hours later, they arrived back in Barnstaple, both in high spirits. Nobody, Lily thought, seemed to make her laugh quite like Sirius did. And the nice thing was that she seemed to have the same effect on him, although she'd never thought of herself as a particularly funny person.

They had had a slightly mad afternoon, and Lily felt a little guilty for taking the day off work. Not very guilty though. Sirius had dragged her into the sea, and she had got very wet, but somehow, after the first minute, she had not cared, and to be fair, he was very good at the spells that dried her shoes and jeans again afterwards. But for the rest of the afternoon, he had behaved like a child on the first day of the school holidays, and Lily had been swept along with it. Arriving back, she felt tired but immensely happy, as well as inclined to giggle at the least little thing.

"Are you coming in?" he asked her, but although the house looked empty, you could never tell; her father was probably late at work, but her mother could easily be in one of the rooms at the back of the house, and she didn't think it would be a very clever idea for Ginny Potter to see them coming in together like this. Lily was aware that her cheeks were pink, her eyes sparkling and her hair all over the place, and to be honest, he wasn't much better.

So she shook her head, and he looked disappointed. She hesitated. Things like this could so easily lead to other things; things she had not actually planned on happening quite yet, after the decision to take things slowly.

But it did seem a shame to just say goodnight and go; back to a slightly lonely house, she reminded herself, because Molly was at Gordon's tonight.

"I don't want Mum to see us," she explained, "But if you want, you could come back to mine."

He looked at her, eyebrows raised.

"Really? I mean, I'm not going to turn down an invitation, but that wasn't quite what I thought we meant by taking it slowly..."

"It wasn't," she said firmly, "I only meant... well, it isn't late. And we haven't had dinner. Come back and have something to eat, that's all. I wasn't inviting you to stay the night, so control your imagination!"

"I can't when it comes to you," he grinned at her, "It runs riot..."

She groaned.

"I'm just going to take that as a compliment and move on. Do you want dinner or not?"

"Yes," he answered at once, "But I can't apparate, so if we go to London, I might end up staying the night after all..."

She smiled teasingly.

"Don't worry. I'll take you home again."

Instead of holding her arm to apparate, he put his own around her waist, and didn't bother letting go when they arrived.

"What's for dinner?" he asked, as she unlocked the door.

"I don't know. Whatever you feel like cooking."

"Well," he said, pensively, "I could always cook you my signature dish. It's the only thing I can make."

She raised her eyebrows.

"Well, feel free, if we've got all the ingredients. I can't imagine it's too complicated, judging by some of your attempts at cooking that I've seen."

He grinned.

"It's not. And the ingredients don't matter. It turns out more or less the same, whatever I put in it. I call it Burnt Mess..."

She giggled, and hit his arm.

"You almost had me convinced there!"

She had the door open by this time, and they were still laughing as they came into the room. A moment later, the laughter had died, because somebody was rising from the sofa to face them.

Lily looked at the all too familiar figure, her smile changing to a look of dismay as she took in the situation; their dishevelled appearance; their laughter; the arm that still rested around her waist, as Sirius appeared to have frozen with horror.

After a moment in which she simply stared, Ginny Potter raised her eyebrows.

"Well. This is a bit unexpected. I'm not sure I can really just pretend I haven't seen it. Like to tell me what's going on?"


	34. Tangling the Web

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything you recognise from the HP books.**

**A/N: Sorry it's been longer than usual since the last update. I've been a bit busy with other things. One of them being a new fic (no, I'm not going to stop encouraging people to read my other stuff... ;-)) called Owl Post, which is basically letters written by the next gen kids while they were still at Hogwarts - it will include all the people you've met so far in Choices, as well as the ones who haven't really featured.**

**Thanks and brownies to Little Ithil, arwenjanelilylyra, ermireallydon'tcare, MagicMidnight, GetOffMyCarousel, Lily Anne Rose, Chiriko1117 and Aunt Mo for the latest reviews. Wow, I hadn't realised until I typed that list of names how many people had reviewed since I last posted! I love you guys :-D**

**To MagicMidnight, who left an unsigned review: Thanks, I'm glad you like it! Yes, you're right - Lily has been drunk at quite a lot of the important points... what can I say? She's young and thoughtless and gets drunk a lot... Though remember that in the battle with the Death Eaters in Barnstaple, she was sober - and managed to save Ben Morrison, and find Sirius, which was what they'd come to do. Almost like being a hero, wouldn't you say? And possibly as close as she'd be likely to get - her instincts are all the right ones, but, well, she isn't really that good at fighting. She's too soft-hearted to want to hurt anyone, and she panics in a crisis. I'm not sure if there are going to be any more opportunities for it, but if it does happen, I'll think about it - I do try and work people's requests in when I can!**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Sirius hastily withdrew his arm from around her waist and she glanced up at him. She understood why he'd done it, but she couldn't help feeling a slight pang of hurt, as if he was somehow ashamed of whatever was going on between them. It wasn't that, she knew, and after all it had been she herself who had refused to come into the house because - and she fully appreciated the irony of it - she had not wanted to run into her mother.

Come to think of it, what was Mum doing here anyway?

She put this question to Ginny, in slightly accusing tones.

"I called round to see you," her mother replied, "I went to the shop, and Roxy told me you'd taken the day off, so I expected you to be at home. When you weren't here, I assumed you'd popped to the shops or something, went and did some shopping myself, then came back. You still weren't here, but I thought you couldn't be long, so I waited. The ward spells on your lock are pathetic, by the way. I hardly noticed them."

"You broke into my house!" Lily said indignantly.

Ginny smiled thinly.

"Well, as I said, I hardly had to do much breaking. And it seemed preferable to sitting on your doorstep. Although I didn't expect you to be nearly an hour. Now, how about you answer _my_ question? _What's going on_?"

"Maybe I should go," said Sirius uncomfortably.

"No," said Lily firmly, "I invited you for dinner, and you're staying for dinner," she looked at her mother, "Mum... can you please not tell Dad about this...?"

"Well, we'll have to see, won't we?" Ginny replied, "You still haven't told me what '_this_' is."

Lily glanced at Sirius again. She wished that he would say something himself; he was far better at talking his way out of things than she was. She had a tendency to talk her way _into_ them instead. But he seemed to have lost his voice. He met her glance though, his expression helpless. She got the distinct impression that he was saying 'your call.'

So she took a deep breath.

"It's exactly what it looks like," she said, far more confidently than she felt.

"I see," Ginny's face and voice were blank and expressionless.

"I know what you're going to say," Lily went on hastily, "You're going to ask if we know what we're doing, and you're going to say we're being really stupid, and not thinking about it properly. You're going to tell us we shouldn't be rushing into anything just now. But we're _not_ rushing into anything. At least it doesn't feel as if we are. I know Sirius has only been here for a fortnight, but we're taking it really slowly..." she tailed off, and looked tentatively at her mother, "So... would it be okay if you didn't tell Dad... or... or anyone? Just for now?"

"Well, first of all," Ginny said evenly, "Don't assume that you know exactly what I'm going to say. I _am_ going to ask if you really know what you're doing. A fortnight isn't a very long time. But then, you're really old enough to decide whether you know what you're doing for yourselves. I'm not going to pretend that I'm not a bit shocked," she looked ruefully between them, "After all, I knew you when you were considerably twice my age, Sirius. I certainly never expected to see you with my daughter. I'm not quite sure I like it," she admitted, sitting slowly back down in the armchair she had risen from, and rubbing a hand across her eyes, "But that's at least partly shock at the whole concept. It's a bit much to take in. I feel a little bit like I'm going to wake up to find that it's all just a surreal dream."

Siruis laughed abruptly.

"You know, I know that feeling."

"So how long has this been going on for?" she asked, "And how many people know?"

"Since yesterday," Lily said firmly, choosing to ignore the little bits of build up that had been happening in the last couple of weeks, as well as the night that had happened in 1981, "So honestly, there isn't much for anyone _to_ know. Only Molly knows that we're... giving it a go."

Ginny closed her eyes.

"Well, there are things I want to say to you Lily, and not all of them are about this. I came round for a reason. But for now, I think I just want to go and sit quietly for a bit, and try and get my head around this," she opened her eyes again and looked at them, "Were you planning on telling anyone at all?"

They looked at each other.

"I... don't know," Lily said at last, "I suppose so. You're... not angry?"

Ginny looked at her daughter in surprise.

"Angry? No, I'm not angry. You haven't done anything for me to be angry about. Only... Oh, Merlin. You never make it simple, do you Lily?"

"I don't know what you mean," Lily sounded a bit indignant, "Molly said the same thing. I don't get it... I don't _try_ and make things complicated! The complete opposite, in fact!"

"I'm not sure how Harry's going to respond to this," her mother said, ignoring this, "But I can't keep it from him; not for long anyway. So you're going to have to tell him."

Lily looked at Sirius and saw a flicker of dismay in his eyes. She knew how he felt. The idea of telling Dad that she was going out with his godfather was not a comfortable one. No, she told herself firmly, not his godfather. Technically, that might be who he was, but you couldn't see it like that. Dad couldn't see it that way himself. Could he?

"So only Molly knows about this?" Ginny asked, after a lengthy pause in which it became obvious that neither of them was going to answer her previous point.

"Well, yes," Lily nodded, "At least..." a note of annoyance crept into her voice, "that is, if the others haven't all guessed by now."

Ginny looked at her.

"D'you think they might have done? I'd have thought you'd know about it if your oldest brother had done..."

Lily laughed bitterly.

"James? Oh, James is busy taking bets on us..."

"_What_?" Ginny exclaimed.

It was Sirius who filled her in, unable to stop his eyes dancing, despite the situation, although he kept his voice deadpan. She stared at him.

"I see. But they don't know that you've... er... skipped ahead a bit? Are you simply going to let them get on with it?"

The slightest of smiles appeared on his face.

"Or help them along a bit, in the wrong direction."

She looked at him for a moment, her mouth slightly open, and then she gave up and dissolved into laughter.

"Oh, Merlin! I ought to be horrified, but it's all too ridiculous... Oh, all right Lily. I can't speak for your father, but I'm not going to stand in your way. I suppose we'll just have to get used to this as well. Although I've got a good mind to have a word with James... _Betting_ on his sister's private life...!"

"No, don't do that!" Sirius sounded alarmed, "That would ruin everything!"

She looked at him thoughtfully.

"By _everything, _I take it you mean your little scheme to, er, what was it you said? Help them along in the wrong direction? All right, they deserve anything they get, so I won't say anything to James and spoil it. But what exactly did you have in mind?"

* * *

The next day, Lily stuck her head into her mother's fire and asked if she wanted to meet for lunch. They met in the Leaky Cauldron, and Lily was reminded of the last time she had eaten in here, with Sirius on Sunday, and how that had ended up.

"Look Mum," Lily knew that she could not beat around the bush or she would chicken out altogether, "This thing with me and Sirius..." she paused, but Ginny simply looked at her, waiting for her to go on, "I... I don't want you to think it's just like all the other times. I mean, I don't know what it is, because it's only just started. But... it's different."

Ginny looked at her daughter gently.

"Lil... I'm not going to tell you what you can and can't do. I'm fond of Sirius, and if you're happy, then I'm happy. But... I asked you if you knew what you were doing, and I'm going to ask again. I don't think Sirius is very good at commitment."

"Neither am I," Lily reminded her mother.

"No, but..."

"But this is different. I don't know... I _can't_ know if it'll last. Maybe neither of us is capable of a proper relationship. But we have talked about this, you know. We both know what the other one's like. I just don't think this is like that. I've never been with someone who makes me as happy as he does..."

She stopped and looked beseechingly at Ginny, who sighed.

"Well then, I hope it works out for you. But just be careful, Lil. I like Sirius. I want to believe that he won't hurt you. I'm sure he wouldn't mean to. I expect I'll be happy for you when I've got over the shock. But... well, just be careful. He's not the safest person to fall in love with."

"Neither am I," Lily repeated.

Ginny smiled slightly.

"No, I expect you're not. You'd better try not to hurt him either. But if this is going to carry on, you really are going to have to tell your father, you know. He can't find out six months down the line. You're going to need to give him time to get used to it."

"I know," Lily said heavily, "We're going to talk about it. Do... do you think he'll be really upset?"

"Upset? I don't know. I think he'll be worried, for the same reasons I am. There's a bit of a difference between liking a person very much and being really quite fond of them, and thinking that they're a good person for your daughter to go out with. And I think he'll struggle with the idea, because he hasn't quite got used to Sirius being here at all, much less Sirius being the same age as his children. So as I said, he may need some time to come to terms with it. But I don't think he'll throw you both out of the house and disown you..." She smiled wryly.

Lily bit her lip.

"Okay. I'll talk to Sirius about it," there was a pause, and then she tilted her head sideways and looked at her mother, "I ought to be getting back to work. But before we go, I was wondering... what was the thing you came round to talk to me about yesterday? You never did tell me."

"Oh yes," Ginny chuckled dryly, "Somehow, other things drove it out of my mind," she leaned forwards on the table, "Lily, have you ever thought about being a writer?"

Lily stared at her mother.

"No," she said bluntly, "Should I have done?"

"Well... maybe. I liked that report you wrote for the prophet the other day."

"Really?" Lily looked surprised, "You cut half of it out when you printed it. You didn't leave much of what I wrote at all."

"Because it was too long for the space we had. There wasn't room for all that description. That doesn't mean it wasn't good. If you'd been writing a proper article, it would have been excellent. Did you enjoy writing it?"

"Oh," Lily digested this, "Well... I suppose it was quite fun to write. But I never thought of myself as a journalist. Dom's the writer, and I'd be no use at the sort of stuff she writes. I'd be better at making stuff up I think."

Ginny laughed.

"Dom writes a gossip column. She makes up half of what she writes. But anyway, I just thought I'd mention it. Something to think about, maybe? I'm not sure that you wouldn't make quite a good journalist, you know. You can be pretty determined once you get your teeth into something. You might want to work on your tendency to get distracted, but you're pretty good at getting information if you want it!"

Lily pulled a face.

"I hate that kind of journalist. They're the sort who used to jump out at us with cameras when I was little."

Ginny smiled, then pulled a face.

"Yes, your childhood must have prejudiced you against journalists a bit. We did _try _and keep you out of it all.

"But there are all different types in the world of journalism. I'm not suggesting you turn into the next Rita Skeeter, any more than Dom has, for all she's writing about rumours not facts. Or me, for that matter. _I'_m a journalist too, remember."

"Well, I suppose I could think about it," Lily looked a bit nonplussed, "I'm not sure about it though."

Ginny nodded.

"I only wanted you to consider it. It might not be what you want at all."

Lily smiled at her mother.

"Thanks Mum. And... you won't tell Dad about... me and Sirius, will you? Or James?"

"No, I'll leave your Dad to you, so long as you do it fairly soon," Ginny agreed, "And as for Jamie..." she smiled mischievously suddenly, "I certainly won't be telling him. I wouldn't miss this for the world. I might even help..."

* * *

"So, Lily," Roxy smiled innocently at her cousin, "How's Sirius getting on?"

Lily smiled vaguely back at her.

"Oh, okay, I think."

"Do you see much of him?"

"Yes, a bit."

Damn it, she wasn't blushing was she? Well, never mind if she was; Roxy knew she quite liked Sirius.

"Actually," she said airily, "I'm seeing him tonight. He said he had something he wanted to say to me. I don't know what."

The first part was the truth. The second part, of course, was a lie. She wouldn't have even tried it with James or Rose, but Roxy was more easily fooled. Lily hadn't been entirely sure whether Roxy was in on the bets or not, but it appeared that she was, as her mouth dropped open in dismay at her cousin's words. Lily hid a smile by pretending to be very busy folding a piece of material for the window display.

Actually, thinking about it, she was a bit annoyed. She had thought Roxy might have had the decency to opt out, but apparently not. One of the others had probably pushed her into it. She wondered how much they'd actually bet; Molly hadn't known that much, but if it was enough to make the usually discreet Roxy push for information, it was probably quite a bit.

She also wondered how long it would take for her news about Sirius wanting to 'say something' to her, to be broadcast. She was pretty sure that Molly had said that it was Hugo who had bet on the shortest time, so that would probably be good news for him. But if she knew James and Rose, once they heard that Hugo looked likely to win, they wouldn't let it rest. Actually, she realised with dismay, she had probably just sabotaged the nice evening she and Sirius had planned for tonight.

Sure enough, she had not been at home half an hour before James sent her a message asking what she was doing that night. On hearing that she was indeed eating at their parents' house, he announced his intention to do the same. She flooed Sirius, who was at home.

"I'm sick of this already!" she told him.

He grinned.

"Don't give up now. You've already got them rattled. We'll let James ruin things for tonight, and then I'll engineer a private conversation with him, and confess that I'm thinking of asking you out some time soon.

"Oh, and your mum cornered me today, and told me that if there was anything she could do to help, to let her know. So I've told her to tell the next one of your cousins she sees that she thinks there's something going on between me and the girl who works in the café in town, because she saw us out together holding hands. Which is completely untrue by the way," he added hurriedly, "I've never held hands with her. Or done anything else with her, other than talk to her occasionally. But it ought to confuse them a bit."

She glared at him.

"So what made you choose _her_? Pretty, is she?"

He looked alarmed.

"Lily, I swear..."

"Relax. I'm joking," she grinned at him, "So long as you don't decide to make it even more convincing by snogging her in front of them. But honestly, are we going to let them ruin every night we have planned together?"

"Of course not. We just won't tell them about the others. This one can't be saved, after your efforts with Roxy today. It's not as though we were going to get much alone time anyway. Your parents are going to be here."

"I suppose so," she sighed, "Oh, and Sirius? At some point, we're going to have to think about..."

"Ssh, hold on," he looked up suddenly, "That's your dad coming in. You'd better go."

She withdrew quickly, with a hasty "See you later," and stared frustratedly at the fire. "_We're going to have to think about telling Dad,_" was what she had been going to say. The sooner they did, the sooner they could stop having to finish conversations in the middle like that.

The meal passed off without too many complications, although Lily could see the cogs in her brother's brain working furiously every time he looked at either her or Sirius. However, although he had clearly come prepared to head them off if it looked like they were trying to grab any time together privately, they made no move, and he was obviously slightly confused by the end of the evening. There was never a chance for Sirius to have a word with James alone, but there would be other opportunities for that.

For the rest of the week, Lily avoided telling anyone but Molly when she and Sirius were seeing each other. Not that they had much a chance to spend quality time together; keeping secrets wasn't easy in a family like hers, even now that her mother knew. On Friday, Lily was amused to be told, by a hesitant and concerned Roxy (who had heard the news from a frantic Hugo) that Sirius had been seen with a Muggle girl in Barnstaple. Lily was slightly gratified by the facts that Roxy did seem genuinely concerned about how the news was going to affect her, and that Hugo had apparently been even more worried about Lily's feelings than he had about his bet.

She didn't quite know how to react to the news though. She couldn't laugh... And she was a hopeless actor. So instead, she went very red, mumbled something unintelligible, and rushed off as soon as possible. She hoped that Roxy might mistake the reaction for distress.

On Saturday, Lily visited home again. She was aware that if she kept this up, her father was going to get suspicious, but she had decided she could get away with it for a bit longer. After all, until recently, she had lived at home herself; it wasn't exactly unusual for her to be around, even if she wasn't normally there in the evenings quite this much. She had hoped that it might just be her and Sirius anyway. Her mother was going to a Quidditch match (Not one of James' – the Holyhead Harpies were playing in the League final), and she thought that her father was visiting the Edinburgh Auror Office. To her irritation, Rose was already there when she arrived. Her cousin had ostensibly come to issue Sirius with an invitation to some sort of music night the following weekend (she extended the invitation to Lily when her cousin turned up, but Lily was dubious; Rose's taste in music wasn't exactly her own). However, she could easily have made this invitation without visiting in person, and it was too much to hope, Lily though resignedly, that she would just leave again afterwards.

She wasn't quite sure where Rose stood on the betting front either. Molly had been faithfully passing information on, but Molly wasn't the best of reporters. After she had declined to bet herself, the others had not thought it necessary to keep her up with what was going on, and anyway she seemed to feel guilty about telling Lily things, as though she were betraying the others in some way.

Lily knew that Rose believed any match between her and Sirius would be a ridiculous mistake; she had made that abundantly clear when she had spoken to Lily herself. But would that have meant that she, like Molly (and Louis and Albus apparently) had refused to join James' betting scheme? Lily knew that Rose had an extremely competitive nature, and that she did not walk away easily from things like bets and dares. Would she have resisted the temptation? Not if James had anything to do with it, and James knew Rose's weaknesses well...

On the other hand, she could equally well be here to discuss the particulars of being an Auror with Sirius. He was starting his first duties on Monday, and Rose was keen to talk about it. Sirius too was eager to hear what he was likely to be doing.

"Well," said Rose, as she thought about this, "Unless there's an incident between now and then, we'll probably be practising strategy. We're still training, remember. You might get put with us, unless Uncle Harry wants to show you the ropes on your first day. He probably will, come to think of it. You already know the techniques; now you'll need to know how the department works. How much have you done in the way of first aid, and stealth work and things?"

He raised his eyebrows.

"Well, I've never done any formal training in them. But I've done plenty for real. I can patch people up pretty well; I've been doing that since school."

She grinned.

"I'm not going to ask. To be honest, you're probably as good as we are in all the things that matter. You might need to neaten things up a bit to pass in the department; we have standardised ways of doing things. But those more or less go out of the window in a real situation. Not entirely of course; you have to bear them in mind, which is why we get them so drilled into us in training. I couldn't forget the regulations if I tried. Otherwise, it will just be the things like how to make a report, and what to say when you arrest someone, and how to do all the routine stuff," she grinned at him, "You know, the boring bits."

He smiled slightly.

"Bit ironic really, if _I_ end up arresting anyone."

"Well, you probably will, if you're going to be an Auror," she pointed out, "Although... at some point, they're going to remember that you're an illegal Animagus and make you register. I'm surprised Mum hasn't cottoned on already actually."

Sirius pulled a face.

"I suppose so. And at some point, I'm going to have to confess that I can't apparate as well."

Rose stared at him.

"What d'you mean? You mean you haven't got your license?"

"No," said Sirius irritably, "Well, that too. But I mean I _can't_ apparate. As in, I splinch myself every time."

Rose looked thoughtfully at him.

"Um. I think you'd better learn. That's one of the things you really do have to be able to do. How the hell did you manage to survive a war without being able to apparate?"

He shrugged.

"I compensated by being very good at other things."

"That won't wash with Uncle Harry," Rose informed him, "That's one of the first things you'll have to do. When was the last time you tried?"

Sirius looked uncomfortable, and muttered something.

Rose raised her eyebrows at him.

"In seventh year," he said resignedly, "I splinched both my arms off. It hurt like hell, so I stopped trying."

Rose looked scornful.

"Do you always give up if something hurts a bit?"

"No!" he protested, "I didn't mean it like that... I mean, I'd been trying for ages, and getting nowhere. That was just the last straw..."

"Well, you better start trying again," she told him, "What exactly was the problem?"

* * *

Half an hour later, Lily found herself sitting disconsolately on the grass, watching with increasing boredom as her cousin tried to teach Sirius to apparate.

"It's your concentration," Rose was saying frustratedly, "You have to _concentrate_ on where you want to go, and on the whole of you getting there. It's not that you can't do the magic. You're just not focussing your mind!"

He had not, to Lily's relief, splinched himself seriously again, but he had failed every time but one not to leave something behind. Lily had been inclined to see that one time as encouraging (he claimed that it had never happened before) but as he had, on that occasion, gone in completely the opposite direction from the one in which he had been trying to go, it wasn't much of an advancement.

Sirius pushed his hair out of his eyes tiredly. He too was growing frustrated, and must be getting a bit sore too, Lily thought sympathetically.

"What about a break?" she suggested, trying not to sound too hopeful, "There's no point expecting to improve your concentration by exhausting yourself. You're getting better, Sirius. Take a break, and go back to it when you're feeling fresh."

Sirius nodded, and looked at Rose.

"My head's splitting," he admitted, "I'm not going to focus now. Thanks for the help though. You've given me a lot of tips."

Rose nodded reluctantly. She didn't like stopping something before she'd achieved success in it, but she knew that they were right. She looked at Lily.

"You know, you should have been practising too, Lil. You're not exactly brilliant at Apparition yourself."

Lily was glad that Rose had thought of this now, and not at the beginning of the lesson.

"I have been practising. I'm getting loads better."

"Anyone fancy a walk into town?" Sirius asked, putting his wand away. Lily nodded.

"I'll come. Mum asked us to get some milk at some point, so I might as well go now."

She had hoped that Rose might choose now to go home, but she should have known better.

"I may as well join you," she said, casually, "I've got nothing else to do this afternoon. For once."

"I thought you usually went to Southampton on Saturdays," Lily said, trying not to let this sound pointed. Rose's boyfriend lived in Southampton.

Rose shrugged

"He's busy this weekend. Out of the country on official business."

There was no way to get rid of Rose, so they strolled into town together.

They passed the coffee shop with the pretty waitress, and Rose glanced sharply at Sirius, confirming Lily's suspicion that her cousin was partly here to check up on what was going on with her and Sirius. But Sirius showed no signs of noticing the cafe, and did not miss a beat in the conversation as they passed it, bringing a thoughtful expression to Rose's face.

A few doors down was the small corner shop where Lily intended to buy the milk

They stepped inside, and Sirius looked fascinatedly at the shelves, particularly the ones filled with various magazines. Lily found the refrigerator, and took the milk up to the counter, while he picked up a magazine and flicked through it. Rose, on the other hand, had gone for the Muggle newspapers. Lily, her purchase over, came over to them, and looked at Rose's face. It was incredulous and slightly scornful.

"They call this news?" she murmured under her breath. Lily looked down at it and grinned.

"Bad choice. That's the Daily Mail. Sort of Muggle equivalent of Rumours. We did a whole term on Muggle news mediums in sixth year. I thought your Mum got Muggle papers anyway." Lily spoke very quietly, with an uneasy glance at the only other customer the shop, a middle-aged Muggle man who was now buying a loaf of bread and his own newspaper (the North Devon Journal) at the counter.

"Not this one."

Rose replaced it, and they turned to look for Sirius. He was looking through a magazine on motorbikes.

"I used to come in this sort of place when I was a kid," he said, without looking up, "I used to buy the magazines, just to annoy my parents."

Rose rolled her eyes.

"Yes, we know. You stuck pictures from them all over your bedroom walls. I remember seeing them, back when Uncle Harry and Aunt Ginny still lived in Grimmauld Place. Come on, Sirius! Let's go."

He replaced the magazine slightly reluctantly, and they turned to leave. But the Muggle man was now standing in front of them, looking curiously at them. As they came face to face with him, the curiosity turned to shock, and something very like awe.

"Sirius," he said, wonderingly, "She called you Sirius."

"Um... yeah," Sirius agreed, "Sorry. Do I know you?"

The man was shaking his head in what seemed to be disbelief.

"No. Well, yes, in a way. I can hardly believe it, and yet... I always knew... I don't know... I suppose I don't know whether you..." he looked carefully at Sirius, "My name," he said, half hesitantly, "is Joseph Ashby. My family call me Joe."


	35. Of Dogs and Daughters

**Disclaimer: Nothing you recognise belongs to me. I'm sure you realise by now that I am not JK Rowling...**

**A/N: Well, usual thanks to my reviewers: Aunt Mo, Lady Drama, wolfergirl, Gaia v, chiriko1117, Calendar, arwenjanelilylyra and Fensta. **

**Hope you all enjoy it!**

* * *

"Right," James flung himself into a chair, "Progress report."

He grinned at Fred and Hugo, who had been his most enthusiastic co-conspirators.

Albus, like Louis, had utterly refused to join in with the betting, saying that he had better things to waste his galleons on than betting against someone who always cheated. Molly too had been obstinate, although she had been remarkably curious about what everyone else was betting. He had not bothered to ask his two eldest cousins. Victoire would have been angry, and he wasn't quite unkind enough to tell Dominique about their theories; she _might_ be discreet, but on the other hand, it might be a bad week for gossip, and Sirius would certainly be a hot topic, especially if his name was combined with Lily's. James thought about the comedy value of this, and regretfully decided that it was not worth the hassle that would come his way afterwards.

So he had left Vic and Dom out of it, and then Rose had been extremely hard to persuade, which was unusual for her. She was still not convinced that either Lily or Sirius was really serious about this, and thought therefore, that their getting into anything would be stupid to the point of lunacy.

That had made James wonder, with slight unease, whether he really knew his sister's feelings on the matter. He knew what _Sirius_ felt – but did Lily actually feel the same way? He was reassured by the memory of Louis' words on the subject; if Louis was to be believed, then Lily would certainly say yes if Sirius asked her out, no matter what Rose might say.

The problem looked like being stopping him asking too soon for James to win the bet.

"Well, you heard what Roxy said," Hugo said now, a smug tone to his voice. Hugo had given the pair a week. If anything happened this weekend, he'd have won.

James and Fred glanced at each other. There was no need to tell Hugo that Rose was over there with Sirius now, and would stay the whole afternoon if she could.

The reason for this was that Rose had eventually been goaded into betting that Lily and Sirius would never get together.

"Lily's not quite that stupid," she had pronounced. However, she obviously wasn't quite as confident in Lily's intelligence as she pretended, as she was willing to give up a precious free day to making sure it did not happen. She refused to admit that that was what she was doing, claiming that she wanted to talk to Sirius about his Auror duties starting on Monday. But James knew that his fiery cousin hated to lose bets.

"I still don't think he'll say anything any time soon," Fred put in, "They've only known each other a fortnight. You can't count them meeting for a few hours in 1980. I think they'll get to know each other a bit better first. And don't forget..." he trailed off, suddenly realising that they hadn't told James about the Muggle girl Sirius was apparently seeing.

Hugo knew what Fred had been going to say though, and frowned. That had been a nasty shock to him, when Aunt Ginny had told him that. He was hoping that there was nothing in it, for Lily's sake as much as for the sake of his bet. His plans did not include Lily getting hurt. She had seemed pretty upset by the news, according to Roxy, who had broken it.

"Don't forget what?" James demanded.

"Sirius was going to ask her out earlier in the week," Fred said hastily, "And I know you were there, but you said he didn't even _try_. I don't think he's going to do it. Not yet anyway."

"He never _told_ anyone he was going to ask her out," James pointed out, "He only told Lily he had something to say to her. He could have been talking about anything."

"Well, I wish he'd hurry up," said Hugo crossly, "I've been trying to give her hints all week, but she won't take them."

"I've got a question," Albus had been lying on his brother's sofa, apparently engrossed in a book, but now spoke. They looked at him.

"What are you counting as 'together' exactly?" he went on, "I mean, we're talking about the girl who once kissed a guy purely because she was cold and thought it would warm her up..." James frowned, but Fred and Hugo grinned at this memory, "If she did that with Sirius, would you count it as 'together'? Or would they actually have to have agreed to be in a relationship with each other before it counted? 'Together' could mean anything!"

"The agreement," James said firmly, "A random one-off thing doesn't count."

"I don't think she'd do that with Sirius anyway," Fred pointed out, "Given that he's practically become part of the family already. That really _would_ be stupid."

"I suppose so," Albus agreed, "Though you never really know with Lily."

"Sure you don't want to bet, Al?" James said coaxingly.

"Quite sure," Albus turned a page in his book.

"Oh, go on, Al!" Hugo said, "What's the harm?"

Albus raised an eyebrow at his cousin.

"Where do you want me to start?"

"Albus, you're turning into an old man already!" James exclaimed with exasperation, "I mean, you were always a _bit _like that, but it's getting worse!" his voice changed, "Come on, put a bet on! I won't cheat, I swear; how can I?"

"By persuading Rose to spend her Saturday afternoon with Sirius, so that he doesn't go sloping off to Lily and help Hugo win?" Albus suggested, and then went on, ignoring Hugo's exclamation of indignation, "You want to know what I bet? Okay then. I bet they're going to make idiots of the lot of you. That's the only bet I'm making. End of story."

* * *

Lily and Rose both stared blankly at the Muggle man. Sirius, on the other hand, froze for a moment, and then his jaw dropped.

Joseph Ashby was looking equally gobsmacked.

"I can't believe it," he whispered, "All those years... I thought I must have dreamed it or something. But I knew, really..." his voice changed suddenly, "But... who are you, really? How did you get here? Where did you come from? I.. I can't believe I'm really seeing you again... It... it _is_ you, isn't it?"

"Um, yeah," Sirius repeated, "It's me... You... you're Joe Ashby?"

Joe smiled shakily.

"Yes. I've changed a little bit more than you have," he looked at Sirius, "You look the same..."

"I have no idea what's going on," Rose interrupted, "But I do know that this definitely isn't the place to be having this conversation. Mr... um, Ashby... I take it you knew Sirius once. But maybe we can talk about it somehwere more private..."

"Yes of course," the man said, sounding eager, "Have you... have you got time for a cup of tea? We could go back to my house and put the kettle on?"

* * *

Joseph Ashby lived in a small house near the centre of Barnstaple. He ushered them in and sat them down in a sitting room with chintz covered chairs and a pleasant air.

"Well," Rose said, as they sat down, "Would one of you like to explain please?"

Joe looked worried.

"I don't think I _can_ explain, er..." he hesitated, looking for a name.

"Rose," she said, "Rose Weasley."

He nodded.

"Well, I'm as puzzled as you are, Miss Weasley. All I know is that when I was a child, my parents found a stray dog in our front garden. They were worried about it because it seemed to be unwell, so they took it inside and called the vet.

"I, unlike them, had seen the dog arrive though, so I knew it wasn't quite what it seemed. Ordinary dogs don't arrive with a great golden light; even when I was five, I knew that. And I was right; he wasn't a dog, he was a man. I caught him... changing..." he hesitated, looking round, but saw no disbelief in the faces of the two girls, so he went on, "He stayed with us for a few days. I... I was delighted. I wanted my parents to keep him. And then he disappeared," he frowned, "I... can't remember what happened to him. I've always been puzzled about that. I've tried to think, but I can't for the life of me remember."

Rose was looking horrified.

"Sirius..." she said, "When you went back to 1981..."

"I told you," said Sirius defensively, "I told you I'd been taken in by Muggles."

"You didn't tell us that any of them had seen you transform," Rose pointed out.

"So it's true," Joe said quietly, "I wasn't mad, and I wasn't imagining things."

"Nope," Sirius said cheerfully, "I really exist. Although I technically shouldn't... but I won't go into that now..."

"But what _are_ you?" Joe asked in an awed voice. Sirius hesitated. There was no need to mention Wizards.

"I'm an Animagus," he said, "I can turn myself into an animal. A dog, obviously."

Joe's eyes gleamed.

"You're _an_ Animagus. D'you mean there are more?"

"A few," Sirius acknowledged.

Joe turned to Lily and Rose.

"And you..." he said eagerly, "Are you...?"

"No," said Rose abruptly, "We're not."

"But," Joe turned back to Sirius frowning, "that doesn't explain the fact that you were the same age then, more or less, as you are now."

"Well..." Sirius hesitated again, "You already know I didn't arrive normally. I... came back in time. For me, it only happened last week..."

"Last week!" Joe sat back in his chair, astonishment in his eyes, "But... but how?"

"We can't explain, I'm afraid," Rose broke in firmly, "I'm sorry. But we really can't."

Joe nodded sadly.

"I suppose I have to accept that. I never thought I'd get any sort of answers at all," he chuckled suddenly, "So when I asked you if you were the Doctor, I wasn't so far off after all."

Rose and Sirius looked blank, but Lily laughed.

"I suppose not," she said, "But he isn't the Doctor. He's just a person. Except when he's a dog. I'm Lily Potter, by the way. My parents live in your old house."

Joe laughed, and then shook his head.

"I remember selling it to the Potters, after Dad died. Look, shall I put the kettle on?"

They agreed to this, and he disappeared to the kitchen.

As soon as he was gone, Rose rounded on Sirius.

"Sirius..." she began.

"No," he answered, before she could go any further, "I'm not putting a Memory Charm on him. He doesn't deserve that. He won't tell anyone."

"How can you know that?" she demanded exasperatedly.

"I trust him," Sirius said obstinately, "And I owe him that much. He was good to me," he looked sad suddenly, "He was just a kid who wanted a dog. I know what that feels like. I'd have given just about anything for a dog when I was a kid. I never got one, obviously."

Rose scowled.

"That's got nothing to do with anything, Sirius. He's a Muggle. He shouldn't know anything. In fact, he shouldn't have remembered you at all. There were Aurors there when we left. They should have done Memory Modifications..."

"They probably did," Lily said mildly, "But as they didn't know what or who Sirius was, or that Joe knew he was a person, they couldn't exactly erase that from Joe's mind, could they? They obviously got rid of any memory of the fight – he didn't remember how you disappeared. But they didn't know about the earlier stuff..."

Rose closed her eyes for a moment.

"Well, what are we going to do about it?"

"Nothing?" Lily suggested, "If he hasn't told anyone for forty seven years, I doubt if he's going to start now."

Joe bustled back in with the cups of tea, and handed them round. Then he looked at them all.

"There's probably a lot I just shouldn't ask, isn't there?" he said wistfully.

"Yes," Lily agreed, "But there's something I want to ask you. After Sirius had... gone... did you ever find a smallish brown dog? He'd have been wearing a name tag that said Cuthbert..."

Joe stared at her.

"He... he was something to do with you as well?" a horrified expression came into his eyes, "He wasn't an... a... whatever-you-said as well, was he?"

Rose laughed shortly.

"No," Lily smiled sadly, "He... he was just our dog. We didn't mean to leave him behind." Tears almost prickled her eyes again at the thought of Cuthbert. Her mother had been upset too...

"Oh," Joe looked kindly at her, "Well... I'm afraid he died quite a long time ago. But he had a very full and happy life. We never knew where he'd come from. The collar made us think that somebody had lost him, so we advertised, but we never found anyone of course. My parents were a bit bemused by finding two stray dogs in the garden within a week of each other... But after Sirius vanished, they didn't have the heart to say I couldn't keep Cuthbert," he looked round at them, the beginnings of an amused smile appearing, "He died eventually, while I was away at university... but we'd let him mate with our friend's dog, and we took one of the puppies. We've kept the line going ever since."

Lily stared at him.

"You mean... you've still got one of Cuthbert's descendants?

The smile appeared properly now.

"More than that, my dear. Would you like to come and have a look?"

He led them through to the kitchen. At the far end of it, a small part was fenced off. As they came in, a head appeared over the fence (which was constructed out of boxes), and a small dog leapt over it to greet them.

She didn't look much like Cuthbert, was Lily's first thought. That wasn't surprising; his genes must be fairly diluted by now. She was about the same size, but her fur was golden and silky, and she looked like she must have some retriever in her. Her ears though, were half pricked, just like Cuthbert's had been.

Then Lily noticed, as she bent to pet the dog, that its nipples were distended and swollen. She looked up, disbelieving, and saw what else was behind the fence. They were no more than squeaking balls of fluff, and there were at least four or five of them, tumbling over each other.

"Oh!" she exclaimed, "Puppies!"

If Joe had had any doubt about whether his visitors would be pleased to be introduced to the latest litter, they were swiftly laid to rest. To be sure, Rose was ready to leave long before Lily and Sirius had grown tired of sitting on the floor having their fingers chewed, but even she was fairly appreciative.

"I can't believe it," Lily said wonderingly, as she looked at them, "These are Cuthbert's great-great-great-grandchildren or something. Isn't that the weirdest thought?"

"Not really," Sirius said thoughtfully, looking at her, "I can think of at least one weirder one."

And she realised that, of course, meeting the descendants of your friend was much weirder than meeting the descendants of your dog.

Eventually, they made their way back into the lounge, and Joe showed them a couple of framed photographs on the mantelpiece. His wife, whom he told them was away for a few days, visiting their eldest daughter. Sirius was curious to know about Joe's life after they had left him in 1981, so the man proudly displayed pictures of his two daughters; the two of them together as children, playing in a swimming pool and laughing at the camera, and then separately, as older girls. The older one wore a gown and mortarboard cap and held a carefully rolled piece of paper.

Sirius gazed perplexedly at the get up. Obviously, it was some special Muggle outfit, but what it meant he was not sure. He glanced at the girls, but neither of them looked puzzled. Lily caught his quizzical glance, and smiled.

"Which university did she graduate from?" she asked Joe, giving Sirius a nudge.

"Bristol," Joe informed them, "She studied Psychology. That was just last year. She's still living in Bristol; that's where my wife's gone to visit her."

Sirius looked back at the photograph, frowning slightly. Lily's careful question had sort of solved his confusion (he _did_ know what university was, although he wasn't sure exactly what going there did for you, or what studying psychology really entailed) but it didn't explain where he had seen an outfit like that before... He frowned at it. He knew he had seen another picture like this, of somebody in exactly the same pose, holding a scroll in exactly the same way, and wearing very similar clothes. But why would he have seen a picture of a Muggle graduating from university?

He shook his head – he could think about that later – and turned to the other picture Joe was showing him.

"And that's my younger daughter; she still lives at home..."

Sirius blinked at the picture. He knew her.

She worked in a coffee shop in the centre of Barnstaple; he had engaged in some mild flirtation with her the previous week.

And according to the story they had fed Hugo, he was going out with her.

* * *

Harry finished reading through the report of an Auror currently posted on a top secret mission in Scotland, filed it carefully in the drawer marked 'classified,' and picked up the handful of parchment still remaining on his desk. One was an invitation to yet another formal Ministry function. He would find an excuse if possible. He had gone to the last one, so nobody could get annoyed with him, except maybe Hermione and he could deal with that.

The others were mostly letters and forms that required his signature. He scanned down the first one, and was just about to put his quill to the parchment when there was a knock at his door.

He looked up as the head of his secretary came round it. Harry had not wanted to be given a secretary, but he had to admit that the young man was efficient, and it did make his job easier. And the young man was one he'd known a long time; his father had been Harry's fellow Auror until he'd moved sideways into the Department of Mysteries. The boy had sometimes played with Albus and Lily; he had been a bright spark and Harry couldn't imagine him staying a secretary for long.

"Yes, Lewis?" he asked, and then looked at his watch, "Oh, I'm sorry. I lost track of the time. Yes, you're welcome to go for lunch if you want. I won't be long myself."

"Thanks, sir," the young man grinned, "But actually, you've got a visitor."

"Oh," Harry looked surprised and then frowned, "It's not Kent, is it? I told him..."

"No, sir," the young man grinned again, "It's not Mr Kent. It's a young woman. Says she needs to talk to you."

"Oh," Harry looked mystified, "Well... I haven't got much to do. I'll see her. Can you ask her to wait for a minute though? I'll just finish these and I'll be out. If she's happy to wait, I'm sure you won't mind entertaining her for a few minutes! Although you might want to suggest that the proper procedure is to make an appointment..."

The young man bit back another grin.

"Yes sir, will do."

His head retreated, and Harry gave his attention to his work again. He emerged from his office a few minutes later to find a familiar figure perched on David Lewis' desk, chatting easily with the young secretary.

"Lily!" he exclaimed in astonishment, and looked with exasperation at Lewis, "You could just have told me who it was!"

"Sorry sir," Lewis said meekly.

"Well, you'd better be off for your lunch," Harry told him, "I'll see you in an hour."

When the young man had gone, Harry looked at his daughter in a puzzled way.

"What on earth's this all about? You don't normally turn up at the office. I take it nothing's terribly wrong, or you wouldn't have been sitting outside flirting with my secretary..."

Lily went scarlet at this accusation.

"I wasn't _flirting!_" she protested, "I've known Davy since we were kids! We were talking, that's all. Honestly Dad, just because I'm friends with a guy doesn't mean I'm throwing myself at his head..." she paused, and he broke in, ignoring what she had said.

"But what are you doing here?"

Still pink in the face, she hesitated.

"Well, I was just passing really..."

"What, passing the Auror Office?" he said, sounding distinctly unconvinced.

"I wanted to talk to you, that's all..." she said, the words coming out in a rush.

"Well, I'm honoured," he said dryly, "Not that it's not nice to see you, Lil, but is there any reason why you couldn't have come and talked to me at home?"

"Not really," she shrugged nonchalantly, "Only I'm not going to be at home this evening, and it just sort of occurred to me while I was at work. I was wondering... whether you'd got anywhere with catching the people from the Sickle Moon, that was all."

He stared at her.

"Well, obviously I can't actually give you that information," he pointed out gently, "As you know perfectly well. Are you sure that was all you wanted to say?"

She looked vague.

"Well... I was just wondering about it, really... Mainly about the man who attacked me. Because you didn't catch him, did you? And I was just thinking that if you did have any idea who it was, I'd be able to help you... I'd recognise him if I saw him, I'm sure I would!"

Harry looked thoughtfully at his daughter. He wasn't at all convinced by her reason for being here (did she think he wouldn't have thought of that?) but... if it was a pretext, then what the hell was she playing at? It made no sense.

"Anyway, it just occurred to me," she went on, "So I came round to say. Because I might be able to identify him from a photo or something..."

"Well, that might be useful," he commented wryly, "If we actually had the first idea who it was. As it is, your willingness to help the investigation has been noted..."

"Right..." she stood up, "Well, I might have lunch in the canteen now I'm here. By the way, how's Sirius doing? It's his first day, isn't it?"

He stared at her, taken aback by the sudden change of subject.

"Oh... yes. Well, I haven't seen all that much of him this morning. Handed him over to one of the Junior Aurors to be shown round, and then I believe he's been at the lecture Dennis was giving, with Rose and co. I was going to have a word with him after lunch; make sure everything's going all right."

"You're not looking after him yourself then?" she questioned. He eyed her quizzically. Since when did Lily take such an interest in the working of the department?

"Well, not all the time," he replied, "I do have other things to do."

"But it's his first day!" she protested. He looked amused.

"I promise you, he doesn't need me to hold his hand. I never take care of the new trainees, Lily. It isn't part of my job. I'll be checking up on him, but he'll be working with other people most of the time."

"Oh. Okay," she looked at the ground and took a deep breath, "Dad..."

"What?" he asked, as she paused, "Come on, Lily, if there's something you want to say to me, would you say it please? I want my lunch!"

"No," she said hurriedly, "There's nothing. Only... well, if I told you something you weren't expecting... something you might not like... would you, you know, just try to listen to me and understand before you said anything...?"

Harry stared at her, mystified.

"You've lost me, Lily," he said at last, "Is this to do with the attack at the Sickle Moon, or Sirius, or something completely different?" he looked up suddenly as the door opened, "And talk of the devil..."

Lily's head jerked round as she started to her feet. Sirius had just put his head round the door.

He looked at the two of them.

"Oh, hey, Lily. Wasn't expecting you to be here..."

"Neither was I," Harry said ruefully.

"Well, anyway," Sirius said, looking at Harry, "Thought I'd check in. I wasn't sure what I was meant to be doing after lunch, and I couldn't find that bloke Reeve who showed me round this morning. Rose was saying they were going to do some practical Dark Arts Detection exercises..." he finished hopefully.

Harry laughed.

"Well, I doubt if you need that much Dark Arts Detection practise. But you may as well go along if you want. See how we do things."

Sirius grinned.

"Okay," he glanced at Lily, "I'm going to catch Rose and the others up and grab some food now..."

"I'll join you," Lily said brightly, "I haven't had lunch yet. See you, Dad."

"But what were you going to say?" Harry said with a frown.

"Oh..." Lily looked at Sirius and went a bit pink, "It doesn't matter. I'll tell you another time. Bye Dad!"

Harry watched her almost run out of the door with Sirius. He was still frowning.

What the hell had all that been about?


	36. The Playboy

**Disclaimer: One of these days, I'm going to write 'I own everything' here by mistake, and on that day, I'll discover that people read these things after all, and find myself filed with a law suit... But today is not that day. I own nothing in this chapter folks, except for maybe a girl called Helen Ashby. Oh, and Davy Lewis.**

**A/N: Thanks and some virtual mince pies, because it's nearly Christmas (you can still have brownies instead if you don't like mince pies...) to my reviewers: Alliaume, Anna Luna, Lady Drama, GetOffMyCarousel, Aunt Mo, arwenjanelilylyra, Gaia v and Chiriko1117.**

**I love my reviewers, but I couldn't help noticing that there are 61 people with this story on their favourites list and 83 with it on alerts! Obviously, that makes me very very happy, and thank you very much, but I would just LOVE to get reviews from some of those silent fans. This story is nearly finished (yes, really!) so you don't have much longer... *hopeful smiles***

**Oh, and as none of you remembered (or at least, nobody commented) who David Lewis was, I've made it a bit more explicit. Some of my little references are purely for my own appreciation, but that wasn't supposed to be one of them. **

* * *

Sirius and Lily headed down the corridor together.

"What are you doing here?" he asked, "D'you often come to the Ministry?"

"No, hardly ever," she admitted, "But I couldn't stop thinking about you..."

He grinned, looking slightly surprised.

"Nothing _too_ inappropriate, I hope. I wouldn't want you getting distracted from your work."

"Oh, shut up," she rolled her eyes, looking self-conscious, "I only meant... I was thinking about you, and I wanted to know how you were getting on. And I thought, why shouldn't we have lunch together? But then, I knew _someone_ I knew would see me if I came to the Ministry, so I had to think of a reason for being here. I thought coming to see Dad would be a reasonable one. I was actually just about to try and talk to him about you and me, only you interrupted."

"You were?" Sirius looked even more surprised, "Oh. Is his office really the best place to have that conversation...?"

"No, probably not," she sighed, "I wasn't _going _to say anything, only then, when I was talking to him... Well, I don't often get a chance to talk to Dad by himself these days, he's so busy. It just seemed like a good opportunity. We were talking about you anyway, because I asked how you were getting on. How _are_ you getting on, by the way?"

"Great," Sirius' eyes lit up, "I mean, I'm hoping I'll get some real stuff to do fairly soon. I'm not supposed to be a trainee. But that lecture I just went to was a hell of a lot more interesting than anything they taught us at school. Of course, they're a bit stricter on rules, and doing things the 'right' way than I'm used to; we never bothered much with Ministry guidelines in the Order. But I suppose I'll get used to it... or else they'll get used to me. Or both. They seem to have a lot more time for unorthodoxy and new ideas than the Ministry ever did in my time, so that's something."

They found themselves in the bustling Ministry café, and spotted Rose, sitting at a table with two of her fellow Auror trainees and David Lewis. Rose looked up curiously as they approached.

"Hey, Lil! Davy's just told us you were here. What did you want to see Uncle Harry about?"

"Oh, it wasn't anything much," Lily said vaguely, "Just something to do with what happened last weekend."

Rose gave her a sharp glance, and her eyes flicked to Sirius for a second, and then back to Lily, but she said nothing.

"Well," she said to David instead, "This is Sirius Black. Sirius, this is David Lewis. He's Uncle Harry's secretary, but he was also at school with us all, and his parents know ours, so we've known him forever."

Sirius stared at the young man for a moment, an odd expression on his face, then he grinned broadly and held out his hand.

"Nice to meet you."

He and Lily sat down, and joined the general conversation. Lily was puzzled at Sirius' behaviour. He kept looking at David, and then looking as if he was trying not to laugh. When David got up for a moment to go and get a drink, Lily leaned over to Sirius.

"What's the matter with you?" she hissed.

He looked at her, his eyes dancing.

"David Lewis? As in your first kiss?"

She closed her eyes and groaned softly.

"Oh, hell. I'd forgotten I'd told you about that. Just... don't you dare say anything, okay?"

He grinned teasingly at her.

"Don't know what you saw in him. He can't compare to me..."

But at that point, Rose interrupted them, and Lily had no chance to retort.

* * *

Rose watched them whispering and giggling with each other, and sighed. If only Lily wasn't Lily and Sirius wasn't Sirius, she'd be thinking it might be the start of something promising. The trouble was that Lily was like that with any good-looking man, and Sirius... well, Sirius appeared to be involved with a girl called Helen Ashby. Rose doubted that that was serious; at any rate, neither of them had seemed very keen for her father to find out.

When Helen had walked in a few minutes after Joe had shown them the photographs, her expression at seeing Sirius in her lounge had been one of blank shock. Joe had introduced her, and said that she worked in a café in town. When he had introduced her to Sirius, she had said "We've met," and then Sirius had been in a great rush to get them out of the house and away.

But of course, that had been enough for Rose to guess who she was, and while she hadn't said anything in front of Lily, she intended to confront Sirius on the matter as soon as she got a chance. She wasn't sure how far Lily's feelings had gone, but she was worried. It was true that Lily flirted with everyone, but sometimes Rose thought she saw something unusual, and mildly worrying, in Lily's eyes. Sirius, on the other hand... Well, all the signs were that he _was _involved with Helen Ashby, even it was just a casual thing.

In which case, it was bloody unfair of him to flirt with Lily in that way, Rose thought angrily, and she'd tell him that as soon as she could get him by himself... No, but she couldn't, could she? Because that would be telling him that Lily liked him as more than a friend, and that was even more unfair on her cousin.

Of course, the thing with Helen Ashby wasn't serious, although it might have become a little more complicated, now that he knew who she was (presumably he couldn't have known her surname or he might have worked it out, and that alone said something about the nature of their relationship). Helen seemed perfectly nice, but hardly Sirius' type of girl. And he hardly knew her anyway; she was just a pretty waitress he had pulled. That seemed to be Sirius' style really, and considering that, Rose thought her cousin must be mad to be contemplating anything at all with him.

All this interference though... Rose didn't like it at all. She wasn't Hugo, who thought it was fun to interfere in other people's love lives. She certainly couldn't be part of this insane plan to try and set Lily and Sirius up. But could she, on the other hand, really try and put a wedge between them and _stop_ them getting together? That didn't seem fair either.

Rose sighed.

Why did Lily have to make things so complicated?

* * *

Harry Potter ate his lunch in his own office that day. He should have been getting on with some work while he did so, but instead he stared out of the window, so deep in thought that he hardly noticed what he was eating.

He liked to think of himself as a good father. He had been determined to give his children the childhood he had never had, and on the whole, he thought he and Ginny between them had done a pretty good job. Of course, James had gone a bit off the rails at school, but that had just been high spirits taken a bit far; he had settled down quite well now and Harry was very proud of his oldest son's achievements on the Quidditch pitch. Albus had never been any sort of problem, and was doing extremely well in his chosen field, and Harry was proud of him too.

Then there was Lily. Harry had never thought that there had been any real problems with Lily either. She had never been as talented as James at Quidditch (although she wasn't at all bad) or as academic as Albus, but she had had her own talents and qualities.

Harry had been able to read between the lines well enough to know that she had been very popular with the boys since she was at school, but that didn't bother him as much as it would have bothered, say, Ron, whom Harry had always considered to be slightly overprotective of Rose (not that it had ever bothered Rosie, who had always done exactly as she pleased). It wasn't that Harry hadn't worried about Lily sometimes, but he trusted her not to get herself into any really silly situations, because she wasn't stupid, for all she was lacking in a certain amount of common sense.

But she had seemed to be sorting herself out recently; of course, the thing with Nick Hartley hadn't lasted, any more than any of the others had, but there was plenty of time for her to find someone to settle down with, and getting the job with Roxy had seemed to be good for her. She was living with Molly, who was a sensible girl, and then there had been this more recent discovery that Lily could write; who knew where that would lead?

The main thing, though, was that until recently, she had seemed happy, and that was enough for Harry.

Then had come that bizarre accident last summer, which had knocked her considerably more than it should have done. He understood fairly well what it had done to her; he knew what guilt at failing to save somebody felt like. It was something he would have liked to shield her from, and he noted the irony in that with a sad smile. He couldn't allow _himself_ to start feeling guilty again, as though he should somehow have stopped that happening to his daughter.

And then, of course, Sirius had arrived, which seemed to be the direct result of Lily's own actions while she was in the past. Harry was still trying to come to terms with the thought that perhaps the Sirius he had known had not been the Sirius he had thought he had known. That, in fact, Sirius had lied to him all those years ago. Of course, he couldn't blame him; he could hardly have told everyone the truth. But it still wasn't a very pleasant thought.

But Lily had naturally had a shock when Sirius had appeared in this time, and Harry didn't feel as though his daughter had quite got over that shock yet. She certainly hadn't been behaving normally, and that conversation today...

It had been extremely bizarre.

He hadn't been at all convinced by her reasons for coming to see him. It had been the thinnest of excuses. Which meant that she must have had another motive, which for some reason she did not want to tell him.

And what had she been trying to tell him? Was that, perhaps, the thing she had really come to say? But why on earth had she come to the office? Why not come and talk to him at home? She had definitely been about to say something important, before Sirius had walked in through the door.

Sirius. It all came back to Sirius.

A sudden horrible suspicion came over Harry. No. It couldn't be. Lily wouldn't... couldn't...

He thought over everything he knew. Lily's lasting depression after she had come back from 1980. Her stunned reaction to Sirius' appearance in 2028. That moment Harry had witnessed under the cherry trees, when a similar suspicion had assailed him for a moment. Her recent behaviour. Her frequent visits home, even passing up party invitations to be there. The break up with Nick Hartley, which had happened very quick on the heels of Sirius' appearance. Her attempt to tell Harry something today;something he wasn't expecting; that he might not like...

Harry put his head in his hands and groaned.

That was how Hermione found him, a few moments later, when she came to see why he was apparently still in his office at lunchtime.

"Harry?" her startled voice broke in on his confused thoughts, "Are you all right?"

He lifted his head and smiled wearily at her.

"Oh. Hello, Hermione."

She closed the door firmly behind her, pulled up a chair and sat down in front of him.

"What's happened, Harry?"

He pressed his hands to his temples.

"I've just had an unpleasant epiphany," he admitted, "And I think I might have been being blind."

Her lips twitched despite themselves.

"Well, it wouldn't be the first time," she pointed out, "Why aren't you jumping up to go and do something about it, the way you usually do?"

"Because I don't know what to do about it," he passed a hand in front of his eyes, "It's Lily," he looked wearily at Hermione, "Hermione, I've been an Auror for more years than I like to remember. When it comes to the Dark Arts, I always know exactly what to do and how to respond. But when it's my own daughter, I haven't a clue. What kind of father am I?"

"A very good one," said Hermione firmly, "But are you actually going to tell me what you think you've realised? What's the matter with Lily? Although whatever it is, I'm quite sure it's not your fault..."

"Oh, it's not my fault," Harry laughed hollowly, "At least, I hope not. But I've just had Lily in here. And I think... Oh hell, I think she and Sirius..."

"What?" Hermione demanded, as he trailed off, "You think that she and Sirius what?"

He did not reply immediately, but she looked at him and read the answer in his eyes.

"Oh, no. No, no, no," she said wildly, "She wouldn't..."

"She's just been here," he said, "which is odd for a start, because she never comes to the office. She started rambling about what happened at the Sickle Moon last weekend, as if that was why she'd come. But that doesn't make sense. She wouldn't come all the way here just to tell me... well, absolutely nothing useful, to be honest. Then she asked about Sirius and how he was getting on..."

"It's his first day, isn't it?" Hermione asked.

"Yes. And then she finally started to tell me something else; something she said she thought I might not like; that she was worried about telling me. But before she could, Sirius himself interrupted us," Harry laughed grimly, "Hermione, I may be blind, but I'm not an idiot. When a girl's eyes light up like that just because a young man walks into the room, even when he's interrupted a private conversation... well, that doesn't mean nothing. And it explains a lot of Lily's behaviour recently."

Hermione had stared at him throughout this speech, and he could see her mind working the situation out.

"Well, you may be right," she said slowly, as if trying to hold on to a piece of rationality, "It doesn't sound as though you're misreading things. But... this is Lily, remember? Her things don't last..."

"Lily's 'things,' as you delicately put it, don't last because she never cares enough about them in the first place," Harry said bluntly, "I may not like that fact, but it's true. I don't know if Lily's ever had real feelings for a man. I've certainly never seen her look at anyone like that before."

Hermione was silent for a moment, looking dazed. She knew her niece well enough to know that what Harry had said was true. And if Harry said that he thought that this time was different, he was probably right, because he knew his daughter even better.

"And..." she hesitated, "Did you get the impression that Sirius... feels the same way, or not?"

"I've no idea," Harry admitted, "But I did wonder... Well, you know as well as I do what Lily's been like for the last six months. She was just beginning to pull herself out of it, getting that job... and then Sirius turned up, and before we knew it, she'd broken up with her boyfriend and was moping around the house looking miserable again – Except when she was with Sirius, when she seemed to cheer up!"

"But you were saying yesterday that she'd seemed a lot more cheerful this last week," Hermione said, "You said she seemed almost back to normal; back to how she was before the summer, I mean."

"Yes, exactly," Harry said flatly, "Now I'm wondering what might have happened in the last week to make her that way."

Hermione sighed.

"Well, this is a mess. Have you talked to Ginny about it all?"

"Well, not about Lily and _Sirius_. That's only just occurred to me. I did comment that Lily seemed happier – and that Sirius did too," he added, as this fresh realisation struck him, "And Ginny went all mysterious, and said she'd had a long talk with Lily, but that she couldn't say anything to me, because it was Lily's place to tell me herself. She said she thought Lily _would_ tell me at some point, and asked me just to wait and talk to her. Ginny and I don't often keep secrets from each other, you know, which means that when there is one, I know it's for a good reason and I trust her. And I didn't worry too much, because Lily seemed _happier_. I assumed that whatever it was, she'd got it more or less sorted out. And I also assumed that she'd tell me when she was ready to, because she always does eventually. I suppose she was probably going to do that today..."

Hermione was looking slightly horrified, as the reality of what Harry was suggesting sank in.

"Merlin, Harry! This is... well, you know how Sirius is! He's..."

"A notorious playboy," Harry finished for her, "Yes, that's true. But that's not all he is. Don't forget the Sirius Black we knew when we were kids, Hermione. He may be a bit of a young idiot just now, but we were all that once. The man we knew is in there too; he's part of who Sirius is, and who he'll become. And the Sirius we knew was a good man with a strict sense of honour, a loyal friend, and the best godfather he could have been under the circumstances."

There was a slight pause while Hermione frowned.

"That's true," she acknowledged, "But I don't quite understand. What are you saying?

"Are you saying that Sirius' sense of honour and his loyalty to you and your father would mean that he wouldn't get involved with your daughter? Or are you saying that he's a decent person, so you wouldn't mind if he _did_?"

* * *

Helen Ashby frowned as she saw who was coming in through the café door, and then she saw that he had the prettier of the two red-haired girls with him, and relaxed a bit. She couldn't remember the girl's name – it had been a flower, she remembered, because they had both been flowers. She had thought they might be sisters, but apparently they were cousins.

It had been a bit of a shock when she had walked into the house to find them in the sitting room. Sirius (she hadn't believed in his name at first) had just been a good-looking customer, who had started flirting with her last week. He had been in a few times, but she hadn't seen him since the previous weekend and, she had to admit, hadn't really thought about him either. To be sure, he was nice-looking and fun, but he wasn't her type at all. There was a wild, reckless undercurrent to him, underneath the smooth words, that made alarm bells go off in her mind.

Then he had turned out to be some old friend of Dad's, which was weird, because he was only a couple of years older than she was, at the most. Dad hadn't lived anywhere but Barnstaple since before she had been born, but the young man didn't sound like a local, and she'd never seen him around before. If Dad had known him somehow, why hadn't she met him herself? It had all been very strange, and nobody had explained properly at all; he and the girls had seemed in a great hurry to leave after she had got there.

She thought now that perhaps his keenness to leave had had something to do with the fact that he had been flirting so much with her last week, considering that he was now holding hands with the red-haired girl, and was therefore presumably going out with her. She wondered if they had been going out long; if so, he had been behaving very badly with Helen, and had a lot of cheek bringing his girlfriend in here.

But she was the only waitress here, so she went over to their table. Yes, definitely a couple, and probably a new one, she conceded. Their hands were touching lightly over the table, and they were looking at each other with the expression that only new couples wore.

They looked up and smiled at her with recognition as she approached, so she smiled back in a friendly way as she pulled out her pad.

"Hey," he grinned at her, seeming much more at ease than he had done when they had met in her own sitting room.

"Hello," she replied, "What can I get you?"

She knew what he would have; he always ordered the same thing, but asking if he wanted 'the usual' seemed a little tactless in front of his girlfriend.

"A tea for me, please," he leaned back in his chair, "Strong, black, three sugars."

The girl wrinkled her nose.

"Ugh, really, Sirius?" she smiled at Helen, looking a little bit nervous, "I'll have a white coffee please."

"Anything to eat?" Helen asked.

They glanced at each other, and she thought that there was a hidden communication going on.

"No thanks," the girl said at last, with another smile up at the young waitress.

Helen fetched their drinks, wondering why, of all places, they had decided to come here. At nearly closing time too, she thought, looking at her watch. She hoped they wouldn't be too long. She wanted to go home.

She carried their mugs over to them. Sirius glanced around the café. They were the only customers, other than an elderly couple by the window, who already had what they had ordered and were taking no notice of them.

"So, how long have you worked here?" the girl – was it Lily? - asked Helen as she put the mugs on the table. Crap. She wanted to be friendly.

"Um, about a year," Helen told her.

"Look," Sirius leaned forwards, "Helen. Have you got a minute?"

She glanced over her shoulder.

"I'm working..."

"Yeah, but there are no customers waiting for you," he grinned at her, looking, she though, a bit shifty, "We wanted to talk to you..."

"Oh...?" Helen looked helplessly at him. What the hell was he playing at?

"Listen," he looked worried suddenly, "That stuff last week; you knew it didn't mean anything, right? It was just a bit of fun..."

She stared at him, shocked, and then looked in horror at the girl, who was smiling wryly.

"It's okay," the red-head commented, "Sirius explained. We... weren't going out then."

"Oh," Helen said again, extremely disconcerted. She wasn't sure that she would have been so laid back about it, if the positions had been reversed.

"Well... don't worry," she told Sirius, feeling very awkward, but hoping he could see that she was telling the truth, "You haven't broken my heart or anything. It wasn't a big deal, honestly. Was that... what you wanted to say?" If it was, she thought, he could at least have had the decency to say it without his girlfriend sitting across the table. Not that Helen could care less about the two of them – she wished them luck – but hell, at least it wouldn't have been quite so bloody embarrassing.

"No, no," he said hurriedly, "It was something else..."

"I've told him this is a bad idea," the girl broke in, still with that wry expression, "But he wouldn't let go of it. To really understand, you'd have to have met my family..."

"Your family?" Helen repeated blankly.

"Well, my brother and my cousins," the girl amended, "You met Rose the other day. She's one of them..."

"But look," Sirius said earnestly, "We'll explain it all... But we wanted to ask you a huge favour..." his eyes were sparkling with a light that made her nervous – with that expression in his eyes, he looked capable of anything. But they had certainly made her curious now. She looked over her shoulder again. The elderly couple had finished their tea, and were looking over at her, looking a little irritated.

"Look, I have to go," she said quickly, "But... we're closing in ten minutes. I have to help clean up, but then I'm free. If you want to wait for me, you can tell me about it then."

* * *

"What are we going to do?" Hugo demanded wildly, looking around him, "Are you _sure_, Rosie?"

"Of course I'm sure," his sister snapped, "She came and met him when we finished work..."

"But I thought she was a Muggle?" Roxy said, puzzled.

"She _is _a Muggle," Rose replied sourly, "She met him outside the Ministry entrance, which you know perfectly well Muggles can't see. But anyway, Muggle or not, her father knows that Sirius is an Animagus at least, _and _that he's a time traveller. Sirius didn't seem to think that was an issue at all. For all I know, the idiot's told her everything anyway."

"I don't know what you're sounding so pissed off about, Rosie," Louis put in, sounding vaguely amused, "I thought you'd betted that it'd never happen."

Rose hesitated.

"Yeah, well, I'm beginning to think I was wrong..."

"What? Would you mind repeating that, so I can write it down?" Hugo demanded, momentarily distracted. She glared at him.

"Oh, shut up. I still think it would be stupid, and I still think it probably wouldn't last, but I'm beginning to think Lily's a bit more emotionally involved than I realised. She denied it when I asked her, but I got a different impression when I was with them on Saturday. And the whole reason I thought it would be stupid, _and_ the reason I thought this betting was a bad idea, was because I didn't want Lily to get hurt..."

The slight smile disappeared off Louis' face at that. None of them had planned on Lily getting hurt.

"But I don't get it," Fred sounded confused, "I thought he told you, James..."

They turned to the one person who had remained silent so far. There was a heavy scowl on his face, and he looked furious.

"He did," James said shortly, standing up abruptly, "And I'm going to kill him when I get hold of him."

For once, nobody tried to dissuade him.


	37. The Work of Aurors

**Disclaimer: I own nothing, as usual. Not even a big old house in the woods in Wales.**

**A/N: Thanks to Aunt Mo, Chiriko1117, arwenjanelilylyra, Gaia v, ms wolf (think I've said this before my dear, but apologies for getting your username wrong all the time in my thanks – fanfic thinks it is a website if I put the dot in, and deletes it), Misti D and Essalinn for the reviews! **

**This is – prepare yourselves – the second last chapter of the main part of this story. I know that, because I've already written the last one. There will then be an epilogue, and then it's over folks. Just to warn you.**

* * *

Sirius couched low, letting the bolt of light that came at him pass over his head, then sprang to his feet and fired one back before he was fully upright again. His opponent also dodged and, quicker than he had thought was possible, shot another at him. He felt it graze past his shoulder as he twisted out of the way.

He was out of breath and a sweat had broken out on his forehead. Shit. How many weeks did it take to regain the sort of fitness he'd enjoyed before Azkaban? He'd thought he wasn't doing badly, but this was taking it out of him already. And she, damn her, looked almost at ease.

"Okay, okay!" he called, angry that he had had to be the one to call it off.

Rose Weasley smiled grimly at him.

"Tired already?"

He pushed his hair out of his eyes.

"I'm out of practice," he said abruptly, "I used to be able to do that for hours. And what the hell was that about? You were using real hexes! You almost got me!"

Her smile disappeared.

"Yeah well, better me than James," she said.

"What?" he stared at her, "What's that supposed to mean?"

She sighed impatiently.

"Sirius, what do you think you're playing at? You told James you like Lily. You said you were going to ask her _out, _for Merlin's sake! James thought you two were going to make a go of it. And he was convinced that Lily wanted to as well. And now you're waltzing round with that Helen girl... How d'you _think_ people are going to react?"

"Oh," he stood and looked at her, wand hanging slackly by his side, "That's what this is all about."

She looked angrily at him.

"What's going on, Sirius? Are you just confused, or is this the way you always treat girls? Because messing Lily around isn't going to go down well with anyone..."

He examined her carefully. His short acquaintance with Rose Weasley had already taught him that she was not somebody to be taken lightly. Lily had warned him that this might happen, but it had seemed like too good a chance to miss. Sirius believed in acting on impulse and sorting things out as you went along. Admittedly, the policy had backfired in the past. He considered his options.

He could lie. There were any number of lies he could pull. He could do the sadly confused act, and pretend he didn't know what he wanted from life any more. That would probably work, but it wasn't very appealing. Or he could say that Helen meant nothing, and it was Lily all the way. But that would ruin the whole point of the deception, and something told him Rose wouldn't believe him anyway. He could pretend that he didn't know what she was talking about, and that he hadn't told James anything at all, and pretend to be mad about Helen, but he thought she probably wouldn't believe that either.

Alternatively, he could cut his losses and tell the truth. He took a deep breath.

"Okay. I'll come clean."

She smiled tightly.

"Good decision."

He stared at her for a moment, but she only lifted an eyebrow.

So he he told her... not quite the whole truth. He left out the fact that he and Lily were actually together. He said only that they had found out that James and the others were betting on them, and had decided to give them something to bet on.

When he had finished this explanation, she looked at him in silence for a few minutes. He waited for the anger. It didn't come. Instead, a reluctant smile broke out on her face, and she laughed.

"So you _do_ plan on asking Lily out?" she said eventually, once she had finished laughing.

"Oh," he looked uncomfortable, "Well, maybe. I mean, I doubt if she..." he let his voice trail off, wondering what Rose would say.

"Hm," she said non-committally, "And it didn't occur to you that this plan was likely to bring James in, breathing fire?"

He shrugged, a smile beginning to appear on his face.

"It seemed worth the risk."

"Oh, really?" she asked, "I hope you still feel like that after you've seen him. On the other hand, you could probably beat him in a duel with your hands tied behind your back.

"And doesn't it make it a bit complicated between you and Lily?" she went on, "I mean, you're both there, knowing that James is betting on the two of you getting together," she didn't mention her own bet, he noticed, "Doesn't that get a bit awkward?"

He shrugged again, leaving her to form her own conclusions. She looked hard at him for a moment, and he almost regretted that. Who knew what Rose's conclusions would be?

Then she too shrugged.

"Oh well. Nothing to do with me," she grinned at him, "It was a pretty good plan, I have to admit. Even if I do think it was a bit stupid, given what you know of this family. It's on your own head though. I'm not getting involved," she drew her wand again, "Ready to start again?"

* * *

Harry found them still practising a few minutes later when he wandered into the yard they had set up for the purpose. He watched them for a moment, unnoticed, noting where their strengths and weaknesses lay.

Rose was good. He had always known that. She had decided that she wanted to be an Auror back in her fifth year at Hogwarts. She had always been a skilled dueller, and excellent at all the important subjects, and more than that, she had the necessary temperament; the fire, the drive, but also the cool-headed, calculating side, and she could think fast and well in a crisis. She had had to learn to reign in her temper – as he had himself, he though wryly – but she had done well on that. He was proud of his niece, and knew that Ron and Hermione were as well. She would make a good Auror, once she had a bit of proper experience under her belt.

Sirius, on the other hand, already _was_ a good Auror. He was a bit rough around the edges, and at the moment, he wasn't as fit, and therefore not quite as quick, as Rose. But that would come, and he had the edge that experience gives. The edge that Harry and Ron and the others had had when they had joined the department after the war. The moves were as natural to him as breathing, because he had had to use them repeatedly in a life or death situation. His body moved without his head having to think about it.

And he had Rose beaten. Harry smiled, seeing what was going to happen a second before it did. Sirius feinted, allowing his ankle to buckle beneath, a sign that he was tiring. Rose, knowing that he would tire before she did, checked for a moment and Sirius moved like lightening. Rose realised her mistake and reacted, but a split second too late. She was already disarmed.

Sirius picked up her wand, smirking, and instantly found himself minus both wands. He looked round indignantly, and found himself face to face with Harry.

Harry looked at his niece.

"Don't assume that other people are going to play by the rules, Rosie. It was a trick; it wasn't proper duelling, but it worked. That's all that matters in a real combat situation."

He handed her wand back and she sighed irritably, knowing that he was right, and that it was her weakness.

Harry turned to a grinning Sirius and held out his wand.

"But Sirius, that _wouldn't_ have worked in a real combat situation. A real enemy isn't going to hesitate because you show signs of weakness. They're going to strike, fast."

"I know," Sirius grinned, refusing to be daunted, "But it worked there, didn't it? And like you said, that's all that mattered. Adaptability. Isn't that in the Auror manual? 'Adapt your methods to suit your situation.' That's what I did."

Harry's lips twitched despite himself.

"So you did. Good job anyway, both of you. Carry on if you want."

"Oh," Rose eyed her uncle doubtfully, "Didn't you want anything?"

"It can wait," he told her casually. He had come down looking for Sirius, but hadn't expected to find him with Rose. There were things to be said, but certainly not in front of Rosie, and to send her away seemed a little pointed.

"Mr Potter!" a voice called, and they turned to see an Auror hurrying towards them, her face set and urgent. Harry immediately lost his casual stance.

"What's the matter?"

"Word's just in. Number Eight's just been spotted, sir. You said you wanted to know straight away..."

"Where?" Harry demanded tersely.

"Wales, sir," the woman glanced down at a piece of parchment in her hand, "Place called..." she hesitated, "Well, that's how you spell it apparently," she held the parchment out to him.

Harry took it, looked briefly at it and nodded.

"Right," he looked at the woman, a determined expression in his eyes, "I'm going to take this one, Natalie. I want you with me, and Jefferson too," he looked up, "Want to come, Sirius?"

Sirius' eyes lit up.

"Yeah, sure. Where are we going?"

"West Wales," Harry said shortly, "Come on."

"Lucky bastard," Rose grumbled, but grinned reluctantly at him when he raised his eyebrows at him, "Good luck. Go and kick them where it hurts."

* * *

Sirius found himself hurrying after Harry along a corridor.

"So... what exactly are we doing?" he asked, "I thought you didn't usually take on field missions these days."

"I don't," Harry looked at him, green eyes bright and grim, "But in this case, it's a matter of getting my hands on the man who tried to kidnap my daughter. I'm not handing it over to anyone else."

Sirius stopped for a moment, shocked, and then hurried to catch up.

"This Number Eight...?" he said eagerly, "This is the man who attacked Lily in the Sickle Moon?"

"No," Harry replied, "But he was there, and we believe that he may have co-ordinated the attack. We don't know where Lily's attacker is, but if anyone can lead us to him, Number Eight can. We've been watching him for some time."

"Oh," Sirius said quietly. Harry stopped suddenly, and turned to face the younger man. He saw something in Sirius' face that he had suspected that he would see.

"Sirius," he said gently but firmly, "It was not your fault that that man escaped."

Sirius frowned.

"It was. I knocked him out. I should have made sure of him, but..."

"But you were in the middle of making sure that Lily was all right, and then of fighting a battle. You caught all but two of them between you; that was a job well done, I'd have said."

"We didn't catch the two most important," Sirius pointed out.

Harry smiled slightly.

"The only reason your man's important is because it was him who tried to take Lily. But anyway, you're going to get a chance to put it right today."

He started walking again, and Sirius followed him.

"What's the plan?" Sirius asked.

"Wait until Natalie's brought Jefferson, and we can discuss it."

Sirius nodded.

"How are we getting there?"

"Apparition," said Harry briefly, "The Senior Auror who's been in charge of tracking Number Eight is already out there. Natalie should have the Apparition co-ordinates from her."

"Oh," Sirius looked worried, "Now would be the time to tell you, wouldn't it? I don't have my Apparition license..."

Harry looked at him in surprise.

"Oh. Well, I'll overlook it this once. We'll get you sorted with one when we get back from this..."

"No... I mean, I tried to get it. I never passed. I _can't_ Apparate."

Harry looked amused.

"Sirius, are you telling me that someone with your talent has failed to learn to Apparate? That's nonsense; you're perfectly capable of the magic involved. You've got the hang of far more complicated things. You were an Animagus before the age of sixteen, for Merlin's sake! If you can manage that, you can certainly manage this! And talking of that, that's another thing you should really get yourself a license for; Hermione's already been on at me about it."

Sirius was looking increasingly apprehensive.

"Yeah, but seriously. If I Apparate, I always splinch myself."

Harry looked at him through narrowed eyes.

"You do know that more than half of the trick of Apparition lies in focussing your mind properly on where you actually want to go, and on getting the whole of you there, don't you?"

"Yeah, yeah," Sirius said impatiently, "'Destination, Determination and Deliberation.' They drilled it into us at school. James and Remus got it after a few attempts. I... didn't."

"Well, I find that slightly surprising," said Harry thoughtfully, "Not that I found it that easy myself, but I got it in the end. Maybe you didn't care enough. Or maybe you fell down on the Deliberation. You have to concentrate hard on getting the whole of yourself to where you want to go. And you have to be very determined to get there. The mistake I made at first was that I didn't care enough about getting out of those damn' circles they drew on the ground. I was thinking 'I want to Apparate,' not 'I want to be out of this circle, on that spot of floor there.' Once you get the hang of that, there's nothing to it."

"Yes, so Rose keeps telling me," Sirius said tersely.

Harry grinned briefly.

"I bet she does. Rose is sometimes more like her mother than she likes to imagine. But never mind just now. We can use Side-Along Apparition. The important thing just now is to get there in time."

* * *

There were three soft pops, and four figures appeared suddenly in a field, behind an overgrown hedge. Nobody saw them except a couple of startled sheep, who scrambled to their feet and bobbed away, calling to their half-grown lambs. It was raining.

Sirius looked around himself. They were standing on a flat grassy area by the side of a river. On the other side of the hedge, there was a road, but the hedge was dense, and nobody would see them.

"I thought it was supposed to be a town?" he muttered to Harry.

"The town's there, by the looks of it," Harry pointed away from the river, to where the grey houses were visible, with a church spire sticking up among them, "We were given these co-ordinates by the Senior Auror who's been in charge of this mission, as a good place to Apparate to without being seen. She should be joining us here..." he looked down at his watch, "round about now."

As he spoke, there was another pop, and a woman appeared. She was about Harry's age by the looks of her, although any grey in her hair had been entirely covered by dark brown dye. There was the same focussed, determined expression in her eyes that Sirius had got used to seeing in Harry's in the last few minutes.

"Ah, Lavender," Harry greeted her, "Sorry, must just check. What was the name of the rabbit you owned as a child?"

"Binky," the woman smiled grimly, "What was the first thing I told you when you arrived at Hogwarts before the battle?"

"Something about why the Room of Requirement might provide a bathroom when there were girls living in it, wasn't it?" Harry sounded amused, "And now that we've confirmed that neither of is the product of Polyjuice Potion; Sirius, this is Lavender Hewitt, an old school friend of mine and one of the original Aurors taken on after the war. I think you might have met her daughter; she's a friend of Lily's. Lavender, this is..."

"Sirius Black," the woman said dryly, "Yes, I have read the papers, even if I have been a bit busy recently. I also got the memo sent out to all Senior Aurors about the fact that he was joining the department. Good to meet you, Mr Black," she turned back to Harry, "Now, we should get going. We may not have long. We'll have to walk; we've got anti-Apparition spells up round the area, which is why I brought you here. It's as close as we'll get."

They followed the woman, who did not lead them towards the town at all, but down towards the river, where there was a footbridge over it.

"Where exactly are we going?" Harry asked as they walked.

"The place is in the woods up there," she gestured across the river, to where the ground sloped steeply up a hill. The slope was covered with trees, and there was no obvious path. They crossed the river, and headed up the hill. It was hard going through the woods; the ground was soft, wet and mossy, and the trees grew close together. They soon emerged into a large clearance however, where the ground had been levelled and a big building had been built.

It looked as though it had once been a house; quite a big, grand house probably. It was made of great slabs of grey Welsh slate, and had big bow windows at the front. Now, the paint on the window frames had peeled so much that there was hardly any of it left, the windows were grimy and had cracked panes, and a trickle of water from the broken guttering had been there long enough to discolour the slate where it streamed down the wall, and to let green slime develop on the stone, and quite large ferns to sprout from the cracks. What had probably once been a lawn, sloping downhill from the house, had been encroached on again by the forest, and was a tangle of trees and thorns, with only the odd rhododendron bush showing that it had once been cultivated. Harry raised his eyebrows.

"Before you ask," Lavender murmured, "It's exactly what it looks like, on the outside at least. We don't know what they've done inside; if there's anyone living there, I'd hope that they've made it a bit more comfortable at least. But nobody's done any work on the outside for a long time. Revealing spells didn't show any illusions up at all."

"So what do you think we're dealing with exactly?" the Auror called Jefferson asked.

"Well, as you know, we'd had our eyes on this place for a while. There are a couple of people who've been seen down in town who are definitely on our list, but they're minor cogs. One of them was seen heading up in this direction, but they disappeared before we could see where they were going. This was the only place around here that was remotely likely though, so I've been having it watched, but until today, there was no particularly suspicious activity. As you know, we've been concentrating our efforts up in Scotland, after last month's sighting. And then Number Eight appeared..."

"Who _is_ this Number Eight?" Sirius asked curiously.

Lavender sighed.

"We don't know his real name. He goes by several aliases we believe, some of whom are real people, with perfectly legitimate backstories, and he's a very convincing conman. He's a Metamorphmagus apparently. It took us a long time to work out that he was only one person..."

"And several entirely innocent people fell under suspicion, because he was using their names," said Harry grimly, "Until he managed to make the spectacular mistake of using the name of somebody who's already dead, at which point we realised we'd been missing something."

"But if he's a Metamorphmagus, how can anyone have 'spotted' him?" Sirius asked, "Nobody can possibly know what he looks like. And surely knowing that must narrow down who he could be by quite a lot?"

"Well, not that much," Lavender answered his second point first, "Being a Metamorphmagus isn't like being an Animagus; you don't have to be on a register. Of course, it does narrow it down a _bit._ There are three options really. Either he is somebody who did not go to Hogwarts, and is therefore unknown to most of British Wizarding society, or he is somebody who, for whatever reason, has successfully hidden what they are from most of their acquaintances, or..." she hesitated and glanced at Harry, "or he is one of the few known Metamorphmagi..."

"Which includes my godson," Harry said dryly, "Who, before you ask Sirius, is not a suspect, no. At least, not as far as I'm concerned. Although I imagine that he has been thoroughly investigated, along with the others... all right, Lavender; I wouldn't have expected or wanted you to do anything else."

"Well, you don't need to worry," Lavender smiled slightly, "Teddy Lupin has perfectly good alibis, and is not on any of my lists any more. Not that we expected to find anything else, but we had to check. And to answer your first question, Sirius, no we can't know what the man is going to look like at any particular time, but fortunately, one of our Aurors managed to put a tracking spell on the man at the time of the incident last month. It was a rushed job, done in the seconds before he Apparated, but it was enough to set off our alarms if he came within our sensing spells. Those alarms went off here about half an hour ago, and the Aurors who were watching this house report that a man in Muggle clothing arrived here, and was admitted, at around the same time."

"So what's the plan?" Sirius asked eagerly.

Harry smiled grimly, and looked at Lavender, who nodded.

"We're going in."

They were not, however, going in immediately, Sirius discovered. Lavender Hewitt and the two other Aurors set off to cover the back of the house. The hill continued on up, and the house backed onto another steep slope, covered in bushes and with lots of easy cover. It also made an excellent vantage point from above, where practically everything could be seen. Natalie Kennet and Auror Jefferson, whose first name Sirius still did not know, would settle themselves there, while Lavender made her way up to a large outcrop of slate that stuck out from the hillside, where there was apparently another Auror watching.

"And we've got another two in the woods, watching the barn," she murmured, "We think there may be a secret passage between the two. So I'll send Jarvis over there too, to give them a bit of back up if anyone tries to escape that way. I'll cover the side entrance myself."

Harry nodded.

"Sounds like you've got everything covered. We'll wait for your signal."

Sirius found himself huddled under a bush, disillusioned, watching an apparently empty and deserted house.

"I usually use my invisibility cloak for things like this," Harry murmured, "But when there are as many people as this on a mission, _one_ of us being invisible wouldn't do much good."

There was a slight pause.

"You mean_ the_ cloak?" Sirius asked eventually, sounding amazed.

Harry chuckled quietly.

"I forgot you'd know all about that."

Sirius grinned, although he knew that Harry couldn't really see him.

"It came in useful occasionally. Did you ever use it at school?"

Harry laughed again.

"Oh yes. All the time."

"What about your kids? Did they get it too?"

"No," Harry still sounded amused, "They would have liked it. At least, Jamie would. But it's a fairly useful thing for an Auror to have as well, and I used to use it all the time, when I still came on field missions regularly. So I kept it."

There was silence for a moment.

"And talking of my children..." Harry said, slightly awkwardly, "You... um, you're getting on with them all right, are you?"

Sirius turned and looked at the older man. There was nothing to see except a faint shape. Had the question been loaded, or was it just his paranoia?

"Yeah, they're great," he said neutrally. He found that his heart was beating slightly fast, and it had nothing to do with the mission they were currently on. This was the moment he should say something... Of course, in some ways, it was completely the _wrong_ moment, because they were lying under a bush in shaggy wet grass, waiting to be interrupted by Auror Hewitt's signal.

But sometimes, you had to take the opportunities presented to you. And he knew that Lily had already tried to talk to her father about it just the other day.

"Thing is, Harry, there's something I need to talk to you about," he said, trying for a casual tone.

"Well, I did say that if you ever needed to, I was here," Harry's voice gave nothing away, "But I'm not sure I was imagining quite this setting."

Sirius laughed softly.

"No, well... if I don't say this now, I probably never will. Plus, you can't murder me here, because it would give us away, and you'd then be a man down."

"Am I likely to _want_ to murder you?" Harry asked.

"Well, you're not going to happy," Sirius said grimly, "The thing is... when you asked how I was getting on with your kids... What I said was true. They're great. But... well... There's something you ought to know..."

"This is about Lily, isn't it?" Harry said resignedly.

There was dead silence.

"You... you _know_?" Sirius asked at last, his voice kept low only by a supreme effort.

"I don't _know_ anything," said Harry dryly, "But I'm hoping you're about to tell me."

"Right," Sirius thought about how to proceed, "But you, um, sort of guessed?"

"Sort of," Harry agreed, "But I have no idea how far it's gone. Or how far it's likely to go. Or what 'it' is. So why don't you tell me? As I think you might have interrupted Lily when she was about to tell me the other day."

"Well... yeah, okay," Sirius sounded slightly nonplussed by this development, "I... never actually planned what to say to you... It would probably be better coming from Lily..."

Harry sighed.

"Sirius, you're not getting away with not telling me now. Anyway, essentially, you've just told me. This is something mutual, then?"

"Um... yeah," Sirius said nervously, "You... you're not angry?"

"Angry?" Harry said tiredly, "No, I'm not angry. Lily's old enough to make her own decisions about life. And I got over the worst of the shock after I realised what she'd been trying to tell me the other day. I'm not at all sure what I think of it, mind. It's not exactly what I expected when I told you that you had a home and a family with us... And now I'm going to sound ridiculously old-fashioned, and ask you what exactly this _is_ with you and Lily. Because if you're planning on this being a casual fling, I _don't_ like it, and I won't pretend to. If it makes you feel any better, I'll be saying this to her as well."

"I can't answer that," Sirius said quietly, after a pause, "Because I don't know. I don't have a clue what this is with Lily, because it's not something that's ever happened before. But I tell you what it's _not_, and that's a casual fling. Not as far as I'm concerned, and according to what she's told me, not as far as Lily's concerned either."

Harry sighed.

"Well, I suppose I'm going to have to accept that, and get used to it, aren't I? And deal with the complications as they come. Just..."

He stopped, and the pause was so long that Sirius glanced at him again.

"What?"

"Just... try not to hurt each other, will you?"

Harry heard rather than saw Sirius' slightly hesitant grin.

"Well, we'll try not to."

Harry hesitated.

"Sirius... I know that this is going to be difficult for you to think about, because you're young and years feel like forever when you're young. And you've only been seeing each other for... well, I don't know how long for, but it can't have been long, so thinking this far into the future must seem a bit premature. But... in twelve years, you're going to have to go back to 1993, and, well, you aren't going to be coming back..."

"Yeah, we've actually talked about that," Sirius said quietly, "Like you said, twelve years ahead is a long way into the future when we're only just feeling our way, but... the situation isn't exactly a normal one. So we've talked about it. And I had a thought..."

"Oh, really?" Harry was distracted from thinking about Lily for a moment, "What's that?"

He broke off as a device he wore around his wrist glowed suddenly silver.

"That's Lavender. We're ready to go. Tell me later."

**

* * *

**

A/N: I had a few concerned reviewers, requesting that I didn't let James hurt Sirius too badly (and one bloodthirsty soul who demanded a fight – thanks Chiriko1117! ;-)). Sorry, I haven't answered that yet. You will see what happens in the next chapter. The LAST chapter. Prepare for me to get emotional.


	38. Final Explosions

**Disclaimer: I own nothing, as usual.**

**A/N: Okay folk, here it is. The Last Chapter of the main story of Choices. It's a good long one, because it didn't work as two short ones. And no, it doesn't tie up every single loose end. The epilogue will tie up a few more, but you may have to use your imaginations for some things (or read my other story, House of Cards, which will have a few more answers when it gets a bit further along).**

**Thanks to my reviewers: Lily Ann Rose, Gaia v, arwenjanelilylyra, Lady Drama, ms wolf, chiriko1117, Essalinn, Anna Luna, Misti D and Aunt Mo. Again, sorry if there are people who didn't get a reply to their review, life's been a bit busy the last few days. You all still get the love, and the virtually-edible rewards!**

**PS – it's only a week until Christmas – yay!**

* * *

The spell blasted away the rotten wood of the front door. At the same moment, Sirius heard a similar explosion and splintering of wood from the other side of the house, and knew that Auror Hewitt had gone in at the side door.

He covered Harry as the older man moved swiftly into the entrance hall of the house, but there was nobody in sight. From the other side of the house though, there were shouts and the sound of spellfire. Then there was a man's voice shouting, and heavy running footsteps. A door at the end of the corridor half opened, then slammed shut again.

"Shit!" a muffled voice yelled, sounding panicked, "They're at the front too!"

Then Lavender Hewitt's voice could be heard, sounding calm and stern.

"Stay where you are and drop your wands, and nobody'll get hurt!"

Judging by the sounds that followed, their quarry were not giving up without a fight. Harry, clearly visible now that he had removed the Disillusionment charm, looked back over his shoulder.

"Stay there!" he called to Sirius, "Don't let anyone out this way!"

And he headed down the hallway.

Sirius drew back from the doorway, still under his own Disillusionment spell. He was disappointed not to be allowed to join the fight that he could hear going on. It sounded like there were several people in there. He peered inside, but there was nobody in the darkened hallway. Harry had gone.

A sudden sound to his right made him glance sideways. What he saw made him swear under his breath.

That was something that ought to have been spotted and covered. The big bow windows on the ground floor opened, and at least one of the people inside had managed to make their way into that room. They were clearly moving surreptitiously, not wanting to be caught, and not knowing where more Aurors might be hiding. The window was opening very slowly. It was so dirty that Sirius could see no more than a faint shadow on the other side of the pane of glass, and the hand that was opening it.

Sirius stayed very still. They shouldn't notice him like this, standing as he was, in the deep shadow of the building. And they didn't. The hand was followed by the head of a man, who looked around cautiously, and then climbed out over the low sill. Sirius cast the strongest non-verbal stunner he could, and the man slid to the ground, hit by the red bolt. Sirius grinned in satisfaction, but he had taken no more than two steps towards the fallen figure when enemies came from all sides.

Several people burst into the hallway behind him, and he swung to face them, but at the same moment, the sound of loud crashing and a shout came through the open bow window, and two more figures flung themselves out, tripping over their fallen comrade.

All very well for Harry to say 'don't let anyone out this way.'

Sirius, not wanting to make the same mistake as last time, decided to protect his prisoner, and fired spells at the two men who were trying to haul their friend upright. One found its mark, and one man went rigid and keeled over, under a full body bind. The other sent a panicked glance round for their unseen attacker, and decided to cut his losses and run for it. Sirius fired a stunner after the fleeing man, but missed, to his own annoyance.

Meanwhile, several other Aurors, including Harry, had reappeared along with a couple of others from the house, who were clearly prepared to fight their corner.

Sirius glanced momentarily down at the man he had stunned first, and froze, suddenly forgetting the skirmish that was going on around him between the Aurors and their remaining enemies.

It wasn't a man, it was a woman. But it had definitely been a man when he had emerged from the window; he had had dark hair and a beard. This woman was blonde. And definitely didn't have a beard.

"Sirius!" Harry appeared beside him, "What's the matter?"

Sirius gestured down to the woman beside him.

"That was a man when I stunned her..."

Harry looked down, and his eyebrows lifted.

"Metamorphmagi revert to their natural state when they're unconscious," he said dryly, "Well done, Sirius. I think you've just caught Number Eight for us. What happened to the other man who came out this way?"

Sirius suddenly remembered the one who had made a run for it, and glanced up, just in time to see the man disappear into the trees, a little way up a dirt track that led away from the house.

Harry's eyes followed his, and he swore.

"That's the man we want. The one who attacked Lily in the Sickle Moon. If we could have got him, she could have identified him and we'd have a definite link between this lot and the Dark League's attacks..." he looked at Sirius, "Think you can catch him?"

Sirius did not waste time with a reply. The words had hardly left Harry's mouth before the big black dog was galloping up the track in pursuit.

* * *

The suggestion of a path that the man had found was a slightly easier route than the one the Aurors had taken coming up through the woods, but not by much. It was muddy and steep and overgrown. The man was struggling down it as quickly as he could, slipping on mud and his clothes caught by brambles.

Four paws, however, were a distinct advantage. The man had had a big headstart, but the gap between them was narrowing. Sirius had abandoned being quiet in favour of being fast, and he saw the man ahead of him glance back at the sound of breaking twigs, heard him swear at the sight of the large black dog crashing towards him, and smiled grimly to himself.

He'd arrest the man by the book – he wanted a conviction, after all – but he might do a bit of damage first. The memory of watching that man fling Lily to the floor with a blow to the face was fresh in Sirius' memory.

If he could catch him in time.

The man flung himself out at the bottom of the trees and Sirius realised that he didn't know how far the anti-Apparition spells stretched in this direction. The man looked back, his wand in his hand. Sirius was within a few yards of him as he skidded out of the trees, transformed before he had properly come to a halt, and drew his own wand.

The man's eyes widened at the sight of him, evidently recognising him, although whether that was from the media attention or from last week in the Sickle Moon, Sirius couldn't be sure.

He realised a split second before the man moved that he was not going to fight. He was going to escape. The man spun on his heel, and there was only one thing Sirius could do in the time he had left. Perhaps the man was outside the anti-Apparition spells and perhaps he wasn't, but there was no time to find out.

There were different kinds of tracking spells, and most took some time to perform. It was possible for a skilled person to put a very quick tracking spell of sorts on somebody, of the sort that Lavender Hewitt had described, which only meant that they had a record of that person's magical signature, and could therefore create sensors for them even without knowing their identity.

The other kind allowed you not to detect the _person's_ magical traces, but to pick up the magical traces of the place they had just arrived in. It had to be done in the instant that they Disapparated, and it was a technique that Sirius had come up with himself, along with James; just one of their experiments, and he didn't think either of them had ever shared it with anyone (he knew _he_ hadn't) so unless someone had come up with the same idea in the intervening years, it was something that only he knew how to do.

It was tricky to get right, but he didn't stop to think about it. As the man spun, he cast the spell, and was relieved that he hadn't waited. They _were_ outside the anti-Apparition spells, and the man was gone. But for a moment, in the space where he had been, a shape like a spinning tornado glowed scarlet, and before it disappeared, Sirius stuck his wand into it.

Then it was gone, but he had the location; it was easy, because it was one he recognised.

Diagon Alley.

He glanced back up into the woods. Harry and the other Aurors had their hands full up there, and the man would disappear quickly and quietly in Diagon Alley. There was no time to lose if they wanted to catch him.

Sirius hesitated. Damn, but he wished he could Apparate at times like this.

But he _could_ Apparate, he thought to himself. He had been Apparating with Rose in the garden just the other day. He just couldn't do it without splinching himself. But both Rose and Harry had told him that there was nothing wrong with his magic; it was just the mental focus that was lacking. Well, that was usually the case for him, he thought with fleeting amusement.

He remembered something else Harry had said to him.

'_You have to be very determined to get there_.' And also '_maybe you didn't care enough..._'

Well, he was determined enough now. There was no way, after all this, that they could let the man slip through their fingers again. Sirius had let him go once; it wasn't going to happen again. Care enough...? Well, of course he bloody well cared.

Sirius closed his eyes, thought of Lily's terrified face as she looked up at him from the floor of the Sickle Moon, and the now faded bruise on her cheekbone, summoned every ounce of determination to catch that man that he had in him, focussed his mind as hard as he could on Diagon Alley... and Apparated.

* * *

"Where are you off to?" James stared at his blonde-haired cousin in surprise. He had just arrived at Louis' house to find the other young man clearly on the point of going out, and fairly dressed up (which, for Louis, meant wearing jeans without holes in the knees, and a new-looking shirt). Louis looked uncomfortable.

"Oh, nowhere special..."

James had been scowling when he had arrived. Now he grinned.

"Yeah, whatever. Look at you, all smartened up. And you're going red, mate. Don't say you've got a _date_...!" he asked, with evil delight.

Loius glared at him.

"No need to sound so surprised."

"Bit early, isn't it?" James questioned, "It's barely five o'clock. Where are you going? And who's it with?"

"None of your business," Louis responded irritably, then looked repentant, "Look Jamie, I'm sorry mate, but he'll be here in a few minutes; would you mind...?"

"Yeah, yeah, of course," James said reassuringly, "Don't worry, Lou; I wouldn't _dream_ of intruding."

He smiled innocently, eyes wide, and leaned against the doorpost, arms folded.

Louis rolled his eyes.

"James... You're still here."

James grinned at him.

"Tell me who it is, and I'll leave."

"For Merlin's sake!" Louis said exasperatedly, "When did you turn into Dominique?"

James looked quizzically at him.

"How come you're going out with someone anyway? I thought you liked that French boy, Nicky. You have been in touch with him, haven't you...?"

The colour of Louis' face gave him away, and James' mouth fell open, then he grinned broadly.

"You're meeting Nicky? Hey, that's great, Lou! Where are you going?"

"None of your business," Louis repeated, "Anyway," he changed the subject before James could say anything else, "have you seen Lily or Sirius yet?"

The grin disappeared abruptly from James' face.

"No, that's why I came. I've just had a message from Fred, who said he's just seen Sirius in Diagon Alley. I'm going to find him. I came to see if you wanted to come to, but as you're otherwise engaged..."

Louis looked alarmed.

"Oh bloody hell, James, don't go and do something stupid!"

James glared at him.

"Well, if I'm turning into Dominique, you're sounding like Albus. I'm fucking angry with Sirius, and I reckon I've got a right to be this time!"

Louis looked torn.

"Yeah, I know, but... well, no offence James, but if you got into a duel with him, I know who I'd put my money on, and it wouldn't be you. So just... don't start anything stupid, okay?"

James looked angry.

"You think I couldn't take him?"

Louis stared at his cousin.

"James, you were there in the Sickle Moon. You watched him fight. Don't be a fucking idiot."

"We'll see about that," said James grimly, "Have fun on your date Lou. I'll see you later."

And with that, he Disapparated, leaving Louis staring at the spot in which he had stood, dismay in his eyes.

Then he shook his head. Well, there was nothing he could do. If James chose to attack someone like Sirius, it was his own fault if he got hurt. He sort of wished he could have gone along too – partly to minimise the damage that might be done, and partly because he was very fond of Lily and very angry himself with Sirius for the way in which he had treated her.

His fire suddenly glowed green. He looked up expectantly, but his face became a scowl as first Rose and then Albus stumbled from the fire.

"What the hell?" he demanded, "What's the matter with you all this evening?"

Neither of them seemed to notice that he was clearly going somewhere. They looked worried. More than worried...

"Have you seen James?" Rose demanded, not apparently hearing his question, and certainly paying no attention to his tone of voice.

"Yes, he's just left. Why?" Louis said grumpily.

Rose and Albus exchanged panicked glances.

"Left to go where?"

Louis stared between them.

"What's going on? What's the matter with you?"

Rose looked stressed.

"Look, we got it wrong. Well, okay, _I _got it wrong, but you can hardly blame me. Those two bloody idiots have just been playing games. Sirius isn't with that girl Helen at all. It's all his and Lily's idea of a good joke..."

Louis stared at her, his mouth open.

"A _joke_?" he said at last, "Why the hell would they do that?"

"Because they found out about James' little gambling idea," said Albus grimly, "So they decided to have a bit of fun themselves. I've no idea what's really going on between them - if anything is, which I doubt - but somehow they got that Muggle girl to play along... Sirius admitted it to Rose today."

A laugh broke out of Louis.

"You have to hand it to them," he said, grinning, "They played that one pretty well..."

"Yes, well," Rose said sourly, "We thought it might be just as well to tell James before he does something stupid. He'll still be furious that he was tricked, but at least he's less likely to actually try and kill Sirius. Where's he gone?"

Louis' smile faded.

"To find Sirius. He's in Diagon Alley, according to Fred. James has gone there too."

Albus swore. Rose looked horrified.

"By himself? He must be mad. Sirius'll run right through him!"

"We need to get after him," Albus said. Rose had already pulled out her Communicator.

"He won't answer," she said, "He wasn't answering before. But it's worth a try."

At that moment, Louis' doorbell rang.

"Oh hell," Louis glared at his two visitors, and went and yanked the door open.

Albus and Rose looked in a startled way at the figure who came in.

"Oh. Hi, Nicky," Albus said blankly.

"Hello," Nicky looked at Louis in confusion.

Louis sighed and rattled off an apologetic explanation in French. It didn't seem to be a very good one, Albus thought – or maybe the situation was just too complicated to be grasped in thirty seconds – because if anything, Nicky's confusion increased.

"No reply," Rose looked up from her Communicator, "We're going to have to go and catch him up," she glanced at Louis, then at Nicky, and back to Louis again, "Are you coming, Lou, or are you staying here? You're more likely than either of us to be able to talk some sense into Jamie..."

Louis sighed again, and said something helplessly to Nicky. Albus knew enough French to be able to catch the word 'pardon.' Nicky shrugged, looking bemused, and Louis said something else apologetically. Nicky nodded, and grinned at Albus and Rose.

"We go and... look James," he tried, "I also."

"Oh," Albus sounded surprised, and looked at Louis, "Shit, Louis, sorry about this. I mean, you don't have to..."

Louis looked resigned.

"It's James; of course I have to. Don't worry, Al, I'm pretty used to him messing up my arrangements. We'll come and find him with you, and then disappear, if that's okay."

* * *

"What I don't get," Rose said as they hurried through the Leaky Cauldron, "is what Sirius is doing in Diagon Alley. When I left the Auror department, him and Uncle Harry and the others hadn't come back from whatever they went off to do earlier."

Albus stared at her.

"What? You didn't say that before? Where did they go?"

"I can't tell you that," Rose said irritably, "Official Auror business. But it wasn't Diagon Alley. Or anywhere else in London."

"Well, maybe Fred was wrong," Albus said with a frown, "I don't see how he could have thought he saw Sirius when he didn't though."

"If he is wrong, I'll murder him," Louis remarked.

"Well, we'll soon find out," said Rose.

* * *

"Roxy!" Roxanne jerked her head up at the unexpected voice, hit the top of it on the table she was crouching under, and swore under her breath. She picked up the order form she had dropped, crawled out, turned round and glared at her brother.

"What the hell are you doing here, Fred?"

Her brother looked worriedly around him.

"Is Lily here?"

"She's out the front, closing up the shop," Roxy told him, "Why?"

"Good," he lowered his voice, "Listen, Rox, I think I might have done something really stupid..."

"Well, it wouldn't be the first time," she said sourly, rubbing the bruise that she thought was probably forming on the top of her head, then took pity on him at the expression on his face, "What have you done?"

"I just told James that Sirius was here..."

Roxy had heard about the latest developments concerning Sirius and Helen Ashby. She stared at her brother.

"What d'you mean? Sirius _isn't_ here, is he?"

"He's in Diagon Alley. I saw him in the street not that long ago. But I went and told Jamie, so now he's out hunting for Sirius' blood..."

"Oh, bloody hell," Roxy sighed, "I wish James could just give it a break for once..."

"Give what a break for once?"

Roxy and Fred looked round to find Lily standing in the doorway.

"Oh... I thought you were locking up," Roxy said worriedly.

"I was. Now I've finished. What's James doing?"

Fred and Roxy exchanged panicked glances.

"Is this something to do with Sirius?" Lily demanded.

"What makes you say that?" Fred asked warily.

Lily sighed.

"It is, isn't it? Sirius and Helen Ashby. I _knew_ it was a bad idea!"

Both Fred and Roxy looked alarmed.

"You know about Helen Ashby?" Fred asked.

"And you're not upset?" Roxy added incredulously.

Lily hesitated for a moment. Now seemed like a good time to tell them the truth.

But at that moment, Fred, who was tall enough to see over Lily's head, through the open door behind her and through the big windows of the shop to the street behind, gave an exclamation.

"Shit!" he muttered.

"What?" Lily saw where his eyes were and spun round.

There was a small café opposite the boutique, with tables outside it. Sirius was sitting at one of them. She had just time to wonder what he was doing in Diagon Alley, when she saw what Fred had also seen.

James was here too.

And if Fred and Roxy had heard about Helen, James almost certainly had.

'Shit' indeed. She had _known_ it was a bad idea.

Lily charged back through the shop, undid her the locking spells she had just performed, and flung the door open. For a moment, she paused in the doorway.

James had reached Sirius and she could see the anger in his face as he looked down at the other man. Sirius had his back to her, but she could see the sudden tension in his shoulders as he glanced up towards James.

She was too far away to hear what was said, but sudden anger with both of them made her hesitate. Maybe she should just let them get on with it. They were both bloody idiots; Sirius for coming up with the stupid idea, and James for thinking he had the right to fight what he thought were Lily's battles for her.

But there was always the chance that one of them might actually hurt the other, and she wasn't quite annoyed enough with them to want that. She left the shop and hurried across the road, leaving Fred and Roxy hovering in the doorway behind her.

Sirius had got to his feet and was facing James. James had his wand out, but Sirius did not; Lily guessed that he was trying to diffuse the situation. If James actually attacked him though, she had no doubt that he would defend himself.

"Listen," it was Sirius talking as she got close enough to hear, "It's not what you think..."

"The fuck it isn't!" James replied furiously, "All that bullshit about caring for her..."

He raised his wand, and sure enough, Sirius' hand went straight for his own.

"James, stop it!" Lily broke in, and both of them jumped and their heads jerked round to her.

"Keep out of this, Lily," James growled.

"No!" she retorted, "Why should I? It's about me, isn't it? It's _you_ who needs to keep out of it!"

"Do you have any idea what this prick's been doing?" James waved his arm theatrically at Sirius.

"I've been trying to tell you...!" Sirius began heatedly

"Shut up, Sirius," Lily broke in, "This was _your_ stupid idea..."

Her annoyance was suddenly cut short. A man had walked into the café beside them and gone to the counter, unnoticed by either James or Sirius, who were focussed on each other. Lily's heart dropped through her stomach, and she promptly forgot the argument. She clutched Sirius' arm.

Both James and Sirius had seen her face change, the colour draining out of it.

"What's the matter?" Sirius demanded in concern.

"That man..." she whispered.

"What man?" James looked disconcerted at the sudden change of topic.

"Don't look," she hissed, "The one inside. At the counter. He's just gone in, and he's talking to someone. He's the man from the Sickle Moon..."

James' face instantly became very serious.

"Which one? The one who...?"

Sirius had not waited for questions. He knew which man Lily meant, because he had followed him from Wales. He looked round, swore when he saw his quarry (who must have just walked past him unnoticed), and made for the door, his face a mask of fury.

"Sirius!" Lily called softly, but Sirius did not turn.

Lily looked at James, her face white.

"He's going to do something stupid!"

James stared at her.

"Is this the man who attacked you?"

She nodded. James' face set grimly.

"Then I hope he _does _do something stupid, and I'm going to help him," he said shortly, "We can talk about the other stuff afterwards."

He turned towards the café, but before he could take more than one step, there was a crash from inside, and the sound of raised voices. Then a small, skinny man - not the one Lily had recognised, but the one he had been talking to - came rushing out, saw Lily and James, evidently recognised them, and shot a stunning spell at them, clearly thinking that attack was the best form of defence.

It was badly aimed, and hit the pavement in front of them. James swore, and fired his own stunner at the man, who had a shield charm up before it reached him, which was fortunate for him because there was nothing wrong with James' aim.

Lily, seeing that her brother easily outclassed his opponent, looked towards the café, just as the window exploded outwards.

Old Quidditch reflexes taking over, she flung herself behind a table, but James had been distracted and she heard his stream of screamed curses and knew he had been hit, even as the street went into uproar.

She scrambled to her feet. At least this time, she was not drunk and she was still holding her wand. James was still upright, clutching a table with one hand and his chest with the other. Blood was spreading quickly across his shirt, from several different places. He was still standing though, so presumably he wasn't killed. She started towards him, but then she looked up and saw Sirius.

The skinny man James had been fighting had disappeared, but the man Lily had recognised was still in the café. She didn't know who had broken the window, or how it had happened, but the fight had stopped. Sirius had his back to the counter. The man who had been serving at it was hovering in the background, a look of horrified helplessness on his face. The man opposite Sirius – he was a stranger, but Lily had seen his face as he went into the café, and knew that it was the same man who had tried to kidnap her – looked shaken, as though he hadn't really expected to be attacked. But he had his wand out, and it was pointing at Sirius' face. She had no idea what had happened to Sirius' wand, but both his hands were clearly visible, and it wasn't in either of them.

Lily didn't register the fact that Fred and Roxy had rushed across the street, or that Roxy and a couple of passers by were attending to James. She didn't see Fred moving towards the café as well. She didn't notice the sudden appearance on the scene of several other members of her family.

She didn't even remember, afterwards, what spell it was that she used. She would have liked to think that it was a stunner, but Rose informed her later that it was the wrong colour, and she suspected that it was actually some sort of childish hex. It didn't hit the man anyway, because it was shot through the broken window and the angle was wrong. Instead, it collided with the blast of green light that the man had at that moment fired at Sirius.

The resulting explosion made her fling her arms over her face, and sent both Sirius and his opponent sprawling with the force of the blast.

A moment later, before anybody else could recover, a red bolt shot from Rose's wand over Lily's shoulder and hit the man. Lily ignored this, and made for Sirius. He had hauled himself to his knees and was looking slightly dazed. A cut on his forehead was bleeding slightly.

Lily, her heart pounding flung herself down to her own knees in front of him.

"Sirius!"

He looked up at her, and she was relieved to see the dazed expression recede slightly. He smiled ruefully.

"I wish you'd stop doing that. That puts us at three-one again, in the saving each other's lives stakes..."

"Oh, Sirius!" Lily almost sobbed, flung her arms around his neck and kissed him.

For a moment he was startled, then he responded eagerly, and they clung to each other while they knelt on the floor of the café, completely oblivious to the audience looking in through the broken window.

Several pairs of astonished eyes fell upon the scene. Several people froze in their tracks.

A moment ago, the scene had been all action. Rose had stunned the man who had caused all the trouble, and had even begun to move towards him. Then, seeing Lily move, she had stopped. Albus had pushed his brother into a seat and was insisting that he remove his shirt so that Albus could look at the damage caused by James being hit with flying shards of glass, and there was quite a lot of blood. Roxy was hovering beside them, ready to help. Fred, Louis and Nicky had, like Rose, drawn their wands, but there had been nothing for them to do.

Now, as Lily and Sirius clung to each other, Lily's watching relatives simply stared. Nicky looked confused; Louis amused. The only people who took no notice were James and Albus; James because he was facing the wrong way and in considerable pain, and Albus because when somebody was injured, that was all he focussed on.

Rose closed her eyes and groaned.

"Well, that's put the shit in the fire."

Albus glanced up from what he was doing, and his eyebrows shot up.

"You can say that again."

"What?" James looked up, glanced round and saw what was going on. His mouth fell open and an expression of fury came over his face.

"That cheating bastard!" He pushed his brother away, and stood up, ignoring his injuries and flinging away the blood-soaked shirt that had still been over his wrists.

Louis grabbed him by the arm.

"James, wait!"

"What's going on?" a new voice spoke, sounding utterly bewildered, "What's happened?"

They turned to find Molly standing behind them, clutching several packages.

"Moll! What are you doing here?" Fred exclaimed.

"I'm shopping," Molly stared at him, "Not that strange, is it? What are _you_ all doing here? And what the hell...?"

Her eyes wandered over the scene, which had gathered quite a crowd of people, and came to rest on Lily and Sirius.

"Oh."

"Yes, exactly," James growled, "Let go of me, Louis."

"No, James, Louis' right," Rose said, "You have to listen to us. There's nothing going on between Sirius and that Muggle girl..."

"Of course there's not," Molly broke in, sounding amazed, "I'd have thought that was obvious... What Muggle girl, anyway?"

She looked back at the couple, who had now broken apart, but were still kneeling in the wreckage, gazing at each other.

"Wait a minute," James was frowning, "What d'you mean? Rose, you said..."

"Yeah well," Rose sounded cross, "I was wrong. That was Sirius and Lily's idea of a joke. Thought it would be fun to wind us all up, and apparently Helen Ashby was in on it..."

"_What_?" James looked furious, "Why the _hell_ would they do that?"

"_Because_, James," Molly sounded annoyed, "you decided you were going start betting on their love lives. You can hardly blame them for wanting to get their own back a bit before telling you they were going out..."

"They're going _out_?" Fred interrupted.

"Well, what does it look like?" Molly demanded, "Of course they are. They're been going out since last weekend. Before you even started to bet. But you can't say anything. Like I said, they were only getting their own back..."

James looked as though he might be going to say something anyway, although the anger had faded to blank astonishment. Then he looked at Sirius and Lily, who had got to their feet and were moving towards them.

"Oh, hell," he muttered, "I just accused him of being a lying bastard. I'm going to owe him another bloody apology, aren't I?"

"Looks like it," Albus agreed, grinning "And you're going to owe me quite a bit of money too. In fact, so are most of the rest of you.

"Because it looks like I won that bet..."

**The End. (except for the epilogue)**


	39. Epilogues

**Disclaimer: I own nothing, as usual.**

**A/N: This is going to be long, obviously. Please read it anyway! :-)**

**I considered making you all wait a bit longer for this, but in the end, I decided just to post it.**

**I for one can't believe I've actually managed to bring this story to an end. I started it back in... April, I think. Maybe even March. Since then, I've finished university, been to Italy for three months (which resulted in a bit of a gap in updates, but I promised I'd never abandon it and I didn't), come home and failed to find a proper job. April seems like a lifetime ago. I had no idea when I started it where it was going to end up - it's surprised me as much as it's surprised you! Especially with just how popular it's been.**

**I don't want this to start reading like an Oscar acceptance speech, but I do have to say a huge, massive thank you to every single person who has read this story, put it on their alerts and favourites list and/or reviewed it. Especially to those who reviewed it. Some of you have been reviewing since near the beginning, some have only found this story recently, but you are all amazing. This sounds cliched, but seriously, you've been my inspiration.**

**Special thanks to the people who reviewed the last chapter already - Lady Drama, Aunt Mo, ms wolf, jessy63, Essalinn, arwenjanelilylyra, Chiriko1117 and Smile ThoughYourHeartIsBreaking. And Gaia v, whose review slipped in just too late to make it into the first list, but who deserves a mention, so I've made a little edit.**

**Not every loose end is going to be tied up in this story. I know I've said this before, so sorry for repeating, but all my stories are set in the same arc - universe, storyverse, timeline, whatever you like to call it. Some are directs sequels to others, while some stand alone, but none contradict the others, and they all compliment each other.**

**Some of the 'loose ends' are therefore because they are to do with something that happens in one of the other stories. I know that some people were reading this story because you like Sirius, not the next generation, but if you got at all attached to any of the next gen characters in this, I would really love it if you gave my other story 'House of Cards' a go (it's a 'prequel' of sorts, and a lot more questions will be answered there - it's also sadly underreviewed ;-)). It's on my profile, obviously, along with a lot more info on my various stories.**

**If you really only liked Sirius though, there will be a Marauder-era story coming soon. Either way, I would be so happy if some of my readers from this found their way to my other stories, because I will miss you all!**

**I'm going to stop now before I get all emotional (then it really would read like an Oscar acceptance speech). Enjoy the epilogue!**

* * *

**Epilogue 1. 30th July 2040**

She found him standing under the cherry trees at the bottom of the garden, and for a moment she looked at him, remembering the time she had stood, a long time ago, in almost exactly that spot. He had found her that time, and she had held him while he wept for his best friend. It had been a bit earlier in the year then and the blossom had been falling. Now the trees were in full leaf.

He was thinking of that time too, she was sure. Thinking of the past. Thinking of James. He would never forget. The pain would never completely heal. He could be happy most of the time, but the shadow of that time was always at the back of his eyes.

And now he was afraid too.

She came up and stood beside him. She didn't touch him, but he heard or sensed her and looked down. She stifled the exclamation that rose in her throat. She had already seen it, of course, but it still gave her a shock every time. Roxy was altogether too talented at this stuff.

"It's not like the effect of Polyjuice," her cousin had explained, "Because he'll still look like _him_. It's just a sort of magical version of Muggle stage make-up. More realistic though. And more permanent, obviously. It won't just wipe off…"

"_Permanent_?" Sirius had demanded in horror. Roxy had sighed.

"No. _More_ permanent. There are counter spells. I'll teach you them. You'll have to remove it gradually, as you 'recover.'"

Lily shook her head. She thought maybe Roxy had overdone it a bit, but her father and Uncle Ron and Aunt Hermione had all nodded approvingly and said that he looked just as they remembered seeing him, the first time they had met him. He looked, Lily thought, a bit like a corpse.

"I have to go soon," he said, evenly.

"I know," she replied.

He glanced down at her again.

"I'd rather not."

"I know that too. But you have to."

He swallowed, and she looked up at him. He was more than scared, she realised. He was terrified.

"What if… what if it goes wrong?" he whispered. She laid a hand on his arm.

"It won't go wrong. It can't…"

"I just wish they could tell me a bit more about what I have to do!" A note of frustration crept into his voice. She shook her head.

"You know they can't. Things _will_ go the way they should, because they already have. You can't live the next three years knowing exactly what's going to happen at every turn. Not even you could pull that off convincingly."

He smiled slightly.

"I only hope I can pull the whole thing off convincingly."

"Of course you can. You already did."

He shook his head, an almost pained expression passing across his face.

"I still can't think like that without it making my head hurt."

She chuckled.

"Neither can I. Aunt Hermione and Rose are the only people who've really got their heads round it, I think. But don't forget, you'll have Dumbledore on your side. You can talk to him. But not until after…"

"I know, I know. I have to stay on the run, and try everything I can to kill Peter… which won't be that much of a hardship, except that I already know I won't succeed, because you told me that ages ago. And I can't reveal myself to anyone until the end of the year. I wish you'd tell me how I do it. It's bloody weird, knowing that I'm making choices, but that everything I do is sort of inevitable."

"I know, but that's the point. They have to be _your_ choices. They _were _your choices. We just happen to know what you'll choose, because in this time, you already made them."

"I know," he sighed, and there was a pause.

"I'm going to tell Remus, you know," he said, at last. Lily looked troubled.

"Really?"

"Yes," he looked seriously at her, "I couldn't lie to him. Not after everything. Oh, I'll wait. I'll wait until we meet each other, and are friends again. But then I'll tell him. He has to know."

"Well… if that's what you decide to do, that must be what happened, I suppose," she said thoughtfully, "And Dad just never knew."

"I wish I could tell Harry," Sirius said wistfully, "It won't seem right… And it's cruel, letting him believe…"

"I know, but you can't. Unless Dad is doing a very good job of lying to us all right now, and I don't see why he'd do that…"

"It's going to be weird. Seeing him when he's _younger _than me again. I mean, the Harry I know here… I never really thought of him as the same little boy who was my godson. The baby I used to cuddle and play with, and make laugh, and wind up before bedtime to annoy Lily and James… last time I saw _that_ Harry was in Godric's Hollow in 1981.

"And now I'm going back to that Harry. A Harry who's still a kid who needs a dad. I want to know that Harry, but I can't think of him as the same person as your father. It's like… like I really am seeing my godson for the first time in twelve years. And I can't wait for that actually, Lil. In fact, the first thing I'm going to do when I get there is go and have a look at him in… Little Whinging, did you say it was? Privet Drive, right?"

Lily bit her lip to hide a smile, and he misinterpreted the gesture as one of concern.

"Don't worry. I won't let him see me. Or at least, if he does, all he'll see is a black dog. I'll just go and have a look. I'll have time to kill, after all."

"Right," Lily agreed neutrally.

They stood in silence for a few moments.

"We'd better go up to the house," Lily said, eventually, "Other people want to say goodbye."

He nodded, and looked at her with a bleak expression on his face.

"Three years…"

"It's a long time," she said, swallowing.

"Not as long as forever."

"No. Not as long as forever."

* * *

Back at the house, goodbyes were said, almost in a daze. There were people crying, but Lily's eyes were dry. She didn't know why she couldn't cry, but she couldn't. She thought it would maybe come after he'd gone.

The whole family was there. The family who had accepted Sirius as one of them, even those who had never known him before. The younger children were confused; they were too small to understand. Jessica and her brother Remus (called, like both James and Teddy himself, after the grandfather he had never known - Victoire had utterly refused to name any of her children Nymphadora, but she had happily agreed to Remus) were the only ones really old enough to understand something of what was happening. There were tears from both of them.

Sirius ruffled Remus' hair.

"Well, I'll be seeing your namesake soon, kid."

"I would say give him our love," Teddy said, with a slight smile, "But he might be a bit surprised."

Sirius glanced at Lily, and gave her the ghost of a wink. She sighed, having a feeling that Remus was going to get that surprise after all.

"You promised," she murmured, when there was a moment, "You swore by the Marauders' honour that you wouldn't tell him who he was going to marry."

"And I won't," Sirius said, straight faced, "Doesn't stop me trying to set them up…"

* * *

"Does it ever strike you?" Hermione asked Harry softly, "That Sirius lied to us all those years ago. We believed that he had been in Azkaban, but he hadn't..."

"Yes," Harry said heavily, "It struck me twelve years ago, Hermione. I've had a while to think about it. If I'd known at the time, I'd have been angry. I'd have felt betrayed. But looking at it now, as an old man..."

"Not that old," Hermione said with slight amusement, "Don't talk yourself into the grave before you belong there, Harry. You're still nearly a year younger than I am."

Harry allowed himself to smile.

"All right. Looking on it as a middle-aged man then, I still have to look at it reasonably. He had no choice. He couldn't have told us – just imagine our reactions. We wouldn't have rested until we'd found out the whole story, and he couldn't tell us our own futures! Would I rather he really _had_ spent twelve years in prison? Of course not!"

"No," Hermione agreed, "Of course not. But... what happened in the Department of Mysteries. When he fell behind the curtain... That almost broke your heart, Harry... Don't you wish that he'd been able to tell you..."

"Tell me what?" Harry laughed harshly, "That he might not be dead after all, but only – what? In some sort of limbo, ready to reappear again in 2028? Well, maybe knowing that would have lessened the pain. Or maybe it would just have driven me mad. Because, as I told you once before, my godfather _did_ die in 1996. The Sirius we've known for the last twelve years isn't my godfather, and I'm not a teenager any more. We've no idea whether it's even going to work. Whether we'll ever see him again, or whether he really did die that day. But whatever really did happen, it made no difference to my fifteen-year-old self. I was still never going to see my godfather again."

Hermione nodded slowly.

"There was... one other thing," she said hesitantly, "I haven't said anything to Lily. But I was thinking maybe we should. Because this idea... I don't see how it can have worked. Do you remember telling us about... the time you used the Resurrection Stone. Sirius appeared then. That means that... he must have been dead."

For a few moments, Harry simply stared out of the window in silence, then he sighed.

"I don't know," he said, "I don't think we can assume that. After all, whatever happens, Sirius wasn't _alive_ in 1998. And the people produced by the Resurrection Stone aren't ghosts. They're something different. They... come from the mind of the person wielding the stone. They're part of that person."

Hermione looked thoughtful.

"You mean, they're not really real?"

Harry smiled sadly.

"I didn't say that. I said that they came from a person's mind. Why should that mean that they're not real?"

Hermione gave him a sharp look.

"Where did that come from?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I see what you mean, and I agree. But you said that last bit as if it were a quote."

Harry smiled again.

"It was."

* * *

In the moment before he left, she stood in front of him, looking up at him. There were tears in his eyes, she could see, but her own were still dry.

"Don't mess it up!" she said, almost fiercely.

"I thought you said I couldn't mess it up…"

"You know what I mean. You have to be ready. You can't get it even the slightest bit wrong. If you do…"

"I know," he said softly.

"Just… don't!" she said again, "Don't you dare be too late, Sirius Black."

* * *

**Epilogue 2. 18th June 1996**

He knew.

He knew how it had to end. He looked into the face of his cousin, alive with malice and determination, and knew that this was a battle he could not win.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Harry. Not the middle-aged Auror who had taken him into his family in 2028, but the teenage Harry Sirius had come to know – and love – in the last three years. The boy who was still the right age to be his godson. James' son. It had been good to get to know that boy; to have a godson again.

It almost broke Sirius' heart, what he was going to do to him.

But he had no choice. He had not chosen to be here today. He was not going to _deliberately _allow Bellatrix to beat him. It would happen, whether he wanted it to or not. It was not a choice. Whether the plan worked or not, he was going to be gone from Harry's life.

In the hand that was not holding a wand, he held the small device in his hand, the gold chain looped tightly around his wrist so that he could not lose it. He could still remember (and it was fourteen years ago, whichever way you looked at it) Dumbledore showing him how to use the thing. You spun it the right number of times, then you let go and it went on spinning... spinning off in time, and it took the holder with it...

It was turned already – with the right number of turns, he sincerely hoped. His thumb was stopping it from spinning by itself. Nothing would happen until he released it. He must not release it too soon, but to release it too late would be worse.

He didn't know whether it would work or not. He might be too late, or something else might go wrong. It had been carefully mended (by the goblins, whom the Harry of the 21st century was on good terms with) and Hermione (again, of the 21st century) had done some extra spellwork on it in an attempt to stabilise it. But there were still plenty of unknowns.

Despite that though, and even though he knew that his cousin was going to win this time, he felt a sort of triumphant exhilaration as he battled her. He had knowledge that she did not. He knew that, within two years, she would be dead too. Her cause would fail. The Pureblood Cause, which had dogged him since his childhood, would ultimately fail, and Bella would go down with it.

So he was laughing as he taunted her, and he was laughing still as the stunner hit him in the chest.

He lost consciousness as he fell, arching through the air. He felt the Time Turner slip from his grasp as he lost muscle control, and knew that it was spinning, looped around his wrist by the chain... Was there a stirring of wind around him? And was it the beginning of time travel, or was it a fluttering curtain...?

As if from far away, he heard his godson's voice, screaming his name.

Then the darkness closed in, and he knew nothing more.

* * *

**Epilogue 3. 4th February, 2023**

Benvolio Morrison opened the letter that had come by the morning owls and looked at it with a smile.

"Dear Ben," the first line read. Even if he hadn't known the characteristic scrawl, he'd have known who it was from, just from the first two words. There was only one person who called him Ben these days. To his friends, he was Benvolio. To everyone else, he was Professor Morrison.

The others… well, his parents were long gone, of course. And Cassius was in Azkaban, and not likely to be coming out any time soon. Hector… well, who knew where Hector was? Safe, Benvolio could not help hoping, even knowing what his brother had done. Hector had never been evil, just misguided enough to follow Cassius. Bathsheba didn't even recognise him any more, let alone call him by name. Tanya, of course, had died years ago, after she had involved herself in that Order in the first war. And Phil… poor, gentle Phil, who had never hurt a fly, had been murdered for helping Muggle-borns in the second one.

No, it was only him and Flora now. Dear old Flora.

But before he could read the rest of her letter, there was a tap at his door.

"Come in," he called, resignedly, hoping he could get rid of whoever it was quickly.

Professor Hardwick, who taught… what was it? Ancient Runes, perhaps… appeared around the door, looking harassed.

"Professor! Sorry to interrupt! There's been an accident…"

Benvolio resigned himself to not reading his letter until later. How irritating. He did hate these affairs. Normally, he left them to Penny Clearwater, his deputy, who was more than capable… but this case was apparently bad enough that somebody had decided that he needed to be told.

An incident on the Quidditch pitch, apparently, he picked up as he half-listened to Hardwick, the other part of his mind on Flora's letter. Benvolio had known, vaguely, that there was a Quidditch match on today, but he rarely took any notice of such things. He knew that the students – and many of the staff too – took it very seriously, but he had never been able to summon much interest in the sport.

Hardwick was still talking, he realised. Something about a first year in the hospital wing… and another student taken to St Mungo's… St Mungo's? Good grief, that was two students in one year! This really _was _serious… He wished he had paid attention from the start of the explanation, because now he was struggling to catch up. A couple of unpleasant jinxes, apparently, which had been combined to very nasty effect… the student – he had not caught a name - was very badly injured, and very lucky not to have been killed…

The students responsible for the jinxes were in Penny's office, apparently, and their parents had been summoned. He shook his head, irritably. Honestly, they should have realised by now that Penny was much better at these matters of discipline than he was. He had no desire to expel students – and expulsion was what it looked like being, given that one of the students was apparently on his last warning already…

"A terrible incident," he interrupted, firmly, "I do hope that the two students who were injured are recovering. But really, Hardwick, I think that Professor Clearwater is more than capable of dealing with it. I give her full discretion to do whatever she decides is appropriate…"

He had an unpleasant feeling that Flora would tell him he was shirking responsibility. He supposed he was. But really, he was terrible at these things. He would probably end up letting the boys off if he got involved. Penny was much better at it. She would make the right decision…

A voice at the back of his mind told him that Penny would make the _harsh_ decision. That he really ought to hear the whole story before handing it over to her. Expulsion was a very drastic step, because it did not just mean removal from Hogwarts; it meant exclusion from the world of magic; a life lived on the margins of society, without a wand. And Penny might just be a little too quick to hand it out…

But he himself would be too quick to forgive. He knew he tended to carry on giving people 'second chances' until it was too late; that was what he had done with Cassius, after all, and perhaps with Hector.

So lost in thought was he that he did not notice another man bursting into the room, and Professor Longbottom had been speaking for some moments before he realised it.

"…not entirely at fault," Longbottom was saying, "A terrible accident, that was all it was. The two jinxes were combined accidentally… and really, Parker's conduct… excusable anger… that poor child…"

Really, what _was_ the man talking about? Benvolio tried to concentrate, but Longbottom wasn't very articulate when he was anxious.

"It was an accident," the Herbology professor was persisting, "Terrible, of course, but really, I think expelling the boys would be extremely harsh… It was only bad luck that the jinxes combined in that way; they couldn't possibly have known… And I know James Potter's on his last warning, but really, I do think…"

Slowly, Benvolio raised his head and looked at the other professor.

"James Potter?"

Professor Longbottom, brought up short, blinked at the headmaster.

"Er… yes… On his last warning, after the incident with the Slytherins, but…"

But Benvolio was no longer listening. He was seeing a scene from long ago. A scene that had been at the back of his mind all these years, especially lately.

And a red-haired girl who had saved his life, when it was he who had been a thoughtless schoolboy. When his lack of action had almost resulted in the death of his sister, and when his reckless attempt to put that right had almost got himself killed.

He forgot a lot of things, but he had not forgotten that. And he had recognised her when she entered the school three and a half years ago (she was unmistakeable, even at eleven); it had been a shock to realise who she was.

"_Just remember you owe me one, Ben Morrison,_" she had said,_ "Because you and me are going to meet again. Take a good look at me, and you might just recognise me. My name's Lily, and I come from a different time; you might have guessed that from the way we arrived. But there's going to be a time, in your future, when you have the chance to make a decision that's going to mean a lot to me and my family. That's when I'm pulling in the debt. I'm asking you to remember me then, and remember that I saved your life, and make the right decision. The right decision for me and my family._ _That's important."_

And for once in his life, Ben Morrison stood up to go and make the right decision.

* * *

**Epilogue 4. 16th March 2075**

"We should tell them," Francesca Lupin whispered, as she broke the kiss.

Seth Potter pulled back, and looked at the purple-haired girl.

"We can't."

"Why not? Are we going to keep it a secret forever?"

The boy looked deeply uncomfortable at the word 'forever.'

"Come on, Frankie. I'm only sixteen, and you're only fifteen. There's loads of time…"

"I just hate having secrets…" she said miserably, "Please, Seth! Are you ashamed of it?"

"No!" he said, a little too quickly, "I just… I think they'll worry. Because… of us being cousins…"

"We're not cousins! Not really. Only distantly! Cousins marry each other all the time; you know they say all purebloods are related in at least three different ways…"

"Yeah, I know. I'm not ashamed." But he still looked uncomfortable.

Suddenly, the door opened, and the two teenagers sprang apart and tried to look innocent.

Their Aunt Rose came in, and beamed at them. She wasn't really aunt to either of them; she was a cousin of Seth's grandfather and Francesca's grandmother, who were also, of course, cousins of each other. But the family were having a gathering at Seth's house. Neither of them had been able to work out the reason for the gathering, except that it had, apparently, been at Aunt Rose's instigation.

Aunt Rose looked over her shoulder.

"It's all right. They're both here."

She came into the room, and Seth and Francesca tried not to look annoyed at the interruption of what had, until they had started talking about secrets, been a rather pleasant session.

Aunt Lily and Uncle Louis followed her in, and Seth and Francesca exchanged confused glances. What was going on?

Uncle Louis closed the door being him.

"Sit down, kids," he said cheerfully. Francesca was already sitting down, but Seth, who had jumped to his feet as the door opened, sat down slowly on the chair beside Francesca's.

"What's the matter?" he asked doubtfully.

"We need to talk to you," Aunt Lily sounded rather serious, as the three adults also sat down, "Just the two of you."

"What do you know…" Aunt Rose said briskly, "About what happened in 2028?"

"Um…" Seth rapidly recalled History of Magic lessons, "There was that whole thing with the Dark League, and…"

"Not that," Aunt Lily waved aside the most significant rising of the Dark Arts since Voldemort's defeat, "About what happened to _us_."

"Wasn't that when you did the whole… time travelling thing?" asked Francesca, curiously.

Aunt Rose smiled at her.

"It was. But you've never heard the full story of that incident. In fact, not many people have heard the _whole_ story. But later this evening, you two are going to go out for a fly. And as you're coming back, you're going to meet me. I'll be Disillusioned, under the tree opposite Number 14…"

"Wait a minute," Seth sounded slightly strangled, "You mean… we're going to meet you, while you're… _time travelling_?"

"That's right," said Aunt Rose, calmly, "And you'll meet Lily and Louis as well. But the thing is, kids, you need to tell us something. I mean, you need to tell the 'us' that you're going to meet later on. We're going to be here by mistake. We meant to go to 1981. You need to tell us how to do that."

Seth and Francesca exchanged alarmed glances.

"But… but we don't _know_ how!"

"Of course you don't," said Uncle Louis, "We're just about to tell you…"

* * *

A few minutes later, two fairly shocked teenagers stood up.

"Think you can remember that?" Uncle Louis asked them. Seth and Francesca looked at each other, then nodded.

"Now, remember," said Aunt Rose, "You don't bring us inside. You don't take us anywhere. You don't tell us your parents' names. All you tell us are your first names, and that you're our great-niece and nephew. That's it. We'll guess, of course. You look too much like your grandfather, Seth. But it doesn't matter, so long as you give us the information. Oh, and you give us this," she pulled out a small vial, "It's painkiller potion. Louis will have hurt his ankle. Got it?"

* * *

A little later, the adults watched them go down the darkening path, holding broomsticks, and apparently arguing with each other.

"He'll get it wrong," Louis said, softly.

"I know," Rose sighed, "I remember. There's nothing we could have done."

Lily was silent, watching the teenagers she knew so well, and remembering the night they had appeared as strangers, so long ago.

They returned to the dinner party. The others knew a little of what was going on, but few of them knew the full story. They didn't ask. It was all something that had happened years ago. It was only a small blip that would happen tonight, on the 16th of March, 2075.

Seth and Francesca returned later, still carrying brooms, and looking subdued, and still slightly shocked. Nobody questioned them.

* * *

It wasn't until everybody was leaving that Seth managed to corner Louis and Lily in the hallway.

"Everything go okay?" Louis asked, kindly.

Seth nodded, and then looked sideways at his aunt and uncle.

"You… you _know_? About me and Frankie?"

They exchanged glances.

"Yes, Seth," said Lily, gently, "We've known since before you were even born."

"Right," Seth looked extremely confused by this, "You… don't mind?"

"Of course we don't," Lily looked amused, "Why should we mind?"

"Well… we are cousins…"

"No. Your grandparents are cousins," Louis pointed out, "As you told us a little while ago; you're _very distant_ relatives."

"Anyway, all the wizarding families are interrelated," Lily put in, "Go a bit further back, and you'll find more cousins. It always happens."

"Right," he said again, uncertainly, "You… you don't think everyone else'll mind?"

"Well…" Louis considered this, "I think it might take them a while to get used to it. Especially your grandfather, who has a tendency to overreact to things. But I'm sure they'll get used to it. And it would be better to have everything out in the open, surely?"

"I suppose," Seth did not sound convinced.

"Look, Seth," said Lily, "You should think about telling people, if this thing between you two is serious. Nobody's going to disown you for it. They might even be quite pleased, if you give them a bit of time. But we promised you once… a couple of hours ago, actually, although it's a bit longer than that for us… that we wouldn't tell anyone. We haven't, and we won't. As I say, you should think carefully about it. But in the end, it's your choice to make."


	40. And Goodbye

**Disclaimer: I own nothing, as usual. Except, you know, the plot. Happy to say that that is entirely mine.**

**A/N: I may as well come clean. I had this planned for ages. Sorry for the confusion caused by my cryptic replies to reviews. You have no idea how hard I was trying not to tell you that it wasn't over. **

**Thank you to all my reviewers. There are so many of you, please forgive me for not listing your names. Know that you are loved and that this is for you. **

**Also, I am sorry to those who liked my other ending better, but I couldn't do it. And sorry to the people who left emotional farewells – don't feel cheated, that was the _real_ ending of the story. This is more like a PS.**

**Anyway, I'm going to stop apologising now.**

**Merry Christmas! **

* * *

It was dark. That was the first thing he was aware of. Very dark.

Then he realised that this was because his eyes were closed. Opening them seemed like a huge effort though. It felt as if he was coming up from somewhere deep underground. With a huge exertion of will, he moved his head.

"He's coming round."

The voice was familiar, but for a moment, he couldn't place it. A man's voice. Who was it? Where was he?

He was gradually getting the movement back in his muscles.

With another great effort, he opened his eyes.

There was something wrong. He couldn't focus on anything. He blinked, and his eyes dragged open again, seeing blurred shapes.

Faces. There were faces leaning over him.

"Give him some space," the voice spoke again, and some of the shapes receded. One stayed where it was, a face with a frame of orange. Behind it, everything was very white.

He blinked again, and felt a hand grasp his own.

"Sirius?" another voice whispered, "Sirius, can you hear me?"

Slowly, his vision swam into focus, and the heavy feeling faded.

He swallowed. His throat was very dry. He wanted to say her name, but he couldn't make the words come.

She looked up at somebody beyond his line of vision, her face twisted with worry.

"Is he going to be okay?"

"I think so," the first voice said quietly, "Give him a minute or two. He's been under for a while. He hit his head as well as being hit with the stunning spell."

Albus. Sirius finally identified the voice. And the white room he was in was a hospital ward. St Mungo's, where Albus worked.

Talking still seemed like too much effort. Thinking was quite an effort too.

Instead, he lifted a hand and found her cheek.

His hand wasn't under as much control as usual, so he wasn't as gentle as he'd have liked to be, but he was touching her... she was real.

"Lily," he muttered hoarsely.

"Hey there," she said quietly, "Welcome back, Sirius. I missed you."


End file.
